To Share My Pain
by Microtomb
Summary: After what one would call an 'eventful' adolescence, Naruto, with a little push in the right direction, finds himself settling down and becoming a Jonin sensei. With the will of fire far from extinguished Naruto takes to his new job. Naru/Hanabi
1. Chapter 1

RE-EDIT:

Broke up 'Big Ol Chunk of Text'...hopefully less intimidating and easier to read now

A/N:

So I recently became interested in this pairing and started reading some Fanfic about it. I only found about 3 good stories of decent length, but then found out they were all discontinued and that really pissed me off. So what did I do? I wrote my own Fic of course. Naruto and Hanabi pairing. If you haven't read past 515ish in the Manga then this holds slight spoilers. This takes place when Naruto is 18 and Hanabi is 13, I Know Konohamaru should be like 14 or 15 by now but I made him younger cause I didn't want to have 2 OC's on Hanabi's genin team. Anyway Longest chapter I've ever written for any of my stories 5k w/o A/N n shit… So proud of myself, I honestly think my writings starting to improve to decent standards as I haven't rushed thing too much and put in quite a bit of fluff. Hope you enjoy…R&R always appreciated.

SUMMARY:

After what one would call an 'eventful' adolescence, Naruto, with more then just a little push in the right direction, finds himself settling down and becoming a Jonin sensei. With the will of fire far from extinguished Naruto takes to his new job. Naruto/Hanabi.

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 1: **Sensei.

The sight saddened him immensely, his best friend…no, his brother, lay in a mangled wreck after having been hit by the full force of his tailed beast rasengan. He knew it would eventually come down to this, and that one of them would have to die, but somehow he was hoping that in the end, it would be him.

"_Tch," The barely alive Uchiha spat out blood as he sneered at Naruto. "after all this time…I'm still weak."_

_Naruto's face remained sombre; he knew the Uchiha was living on borrowed time, very soon he'd…_

"_Sasuke…it didn't have to be this way…" He choked out, fists trembling._

"_Why…why do you still protect that village…they hated you, they destroyed my clan and manipulated Itachi…they deserve to be destroyed! SO WHY DAMMIT!" Sasuke's righteous fury brought him into a series of hacking coughs, blood streaming freely from his disfigured form._

"_Because they are my family, Konoha is my home…they may have done terrible acts in the past…but I know it can change."_

_Sasuke's vision was starting to falter, he could feel deaths touch embracing him…but he wouldn't go until he had the answer to his question._

"_A-and, how… how do you expect it to change, Naruto?"_

"_I will change it Sasuke…for the both of us… when I'm Hokage." He replied with the most conviction he had ever felt. Sasuke's eyes widened at this._

'_When he's Hokage? A few years ago I would've laughed at the dobe's claim, but now… it doesn't seem like such a far cry off… you've become strong…stronger then me…then my pitiful feelings for revenge…Naruto. '_

_Sasuke could feel he no longer had any life remaining in his body, if he weren't so prideful he may have offered his brother a genuine smile, however being who he was, he kept up appearances till the very end. His trademark 'I'm better then you' smirk adorned his face for the last time, and with his last breath, offered Naruto his goodbyes._

"_Hokage? Yeah right…do…be…"_

_123456_

Naruto awoke to the sun streaming through his window, a groan elicited itself from his throat as he grumbled about 'stupid suns and waking people up', he looked at the time and saw he still had one hour before he needed to rise. He cursed himself for not closing his curtains last night which effectively led to the inhumane torture of exposure to the sun he was experiencing now. He wondered how he had even agreed to become a jonin sensei in the first place, until he remembered something to do with a very irate Hokage and 'raising the next generation of Shinobi' as the council had put it. Apparently saving the village granted people a free pass from genin to jonin but he wasn't complaining. After the great loss of Shinobi in the war against Mardara followed by the small invasion of Konoha by the last Uchiha, the village could more or less use some more capable ninja. He was a bit weary about the team he had been assigned however.

He was excited to be teaching Konohamaru, but then there was the Hyuuga who had a stick up her ass (he didn't know this for a fact but rather assumed it as all Hyuuga's with the exception of Hinata and possibly Neji did.) although that didn't really mind him. What really bothered him was the third member of the team, Hokazu Takusa. He knew for a fact that Danzo had taken the boy under his wing and couldn't help but wonder if the council just wanted to make the boy into one of their mindless killing machines… these were however empty theories as Danzo was long since dead, although there was never word about the decommissioning of his ROOT… but that isn't to say there was ever any word on it at all even when Danzo was around, so that kept the boy wondering.

He found himself mildly bewildered as to why the council had shown such interest in him becoming a sensei, he would of thought their reaction to the suggestion would've been more along the lines of 'we won't have our younger generation infected by this Kyuubi filth', but upon asking Tsunade apparently word had gotten out about him teaching the rasengan to Konohamaru. The council had made it very clear that they wanted Naruto to write down jutsu scrolls of all his known techniques so that they could 'analyse' them. Stealing would be a more appropriate word and Naruto had adamantly refused. Apparently placing one of their mindless drones (Takusa) in his team was their back up plan, for some reason they had this stupid idea that Naruto was just going to up and teach all his signature jutsu to every student he had. He however was smarter then this and knew that Takusa was just one of their pawns to try and learn his jutsus, especially after they found out he could use the Hiraishin no jutsu. Many on the council were practically drooling at the prospect of learning the secrets of this particular jutsu and tried to play the 'it's your duty to the village to tell us' card…again Naruto would have none of this and was more then annoyed at their apparent ignorance and persistence in the matter.

Now that he thought about it ever since his return from his training with bee, the village council had more or less been trying to take advantage of Naruto in every conceivable way, the Godaime however in a figurative way 'had his back' so things such as jutsu usurping or sending him on suicide missions were usually limited. Surprisingly enough Shikamaru was the deciding factor in him becoming a Sensei, Naruto actually did have the decision to refuse, although it was laced with the 'decline and I'll kick your ass' undertone from Tsunade. Shikamaru had actually taken on a team prior to the Uchiha's invasion and had told Naruto how he was passing on the will of fire like his sensei would've wanted. In a sense all the talk about 'will of fire' was something he did hold close to heart, this having been instilled by the late Sandaime. He had had a long 'man to man' talk with Shikamaru and it was one of the times Naruto had ever seen the Nara show so much emotion.

'_Don't get me wrong Naruto, having a genin team can be troublesome, among other things…but you know, they grow on you. I'm not one for sentiment, but it's rewarding in its own troublesome way.'_

Naruto smirked at this memory; it was so unlike Shikamaru to say any of those things, beside the troublesome part. He figured if a genin team could change a man like Shikamaru, and for the better no doubt, he may as well give it a shot…That aaand he'd rather not piss Tsunade off and die. As Naruto shook his head of these thoughts as he got out of his single bed sluggishly and started the search for his clothes. He wore pretty much the same apparel he had for the past 3 years, except now he made it a habit to wear the sage like haori he had worn in battle against Pein those years ago. It was mostly out of respect for his fallen Sensei as it had been a gift from the toads, plus the Yondaime had worn one, albeit one of different colour scheme but it somehow reminded him of his father. As time passed and piles of unwashed clothes were over turned he finally found and pieced together his, what people liked to call, 'signature outfit'. If anyone saw a red, orange and black blur it generally meant Naruto was up and about. It somehow defined him in society as he had somehow gotten a fan-base going for him after he saved the village, not once, but twice. There were however those who still looked at him with malice but those were few and far and he really didn't have time to worry about them, so with a pull of his hands his Konoha head protector fastened itself to his head and he was all ready for his first day as a Sensei.

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Walking down the streets of Konoha he noticed many heads turn his way, despite the fact that the majority of people stopped glaring at him didn't mean that they stopped looking his way. There were a number of reasons as to why they looked, or so he was told. He was actually quite ignorant of why until he figured he'd ask someone. This isn't to say Naruto was so dumb he couldn't find out, but on certain issues, the boy just seemed to be incredibly dense. Enlightenment came in the form of Ayame, being a people person and the shop being frequented more as of late, Ayame was usually in the loop on most things. She stated a long list of reasons including respect, awe, gratitude, guilt and she was about to say something else before she cut herself off. Naruto caught this and pressed the matter saying that her not telling him would just make him more curious. With a deep blush Ayame almost seemed to become a stuttering fan girl and muttered out 'Y-you're v-very se-..uh attra-…uh…good looking.' Naruto was more then just a little taken aback by this but thought back on it and knew it to be true. He face palmed as he remembered the incident where a girl walked into a pole because her eyes were trained on Naruto. This should have been more than enough to hint at Ayame's claims and he found himself wondering how he couldn't have noticed sooner. As he thought of Ayame, ramen sprang to mind and seeing as how it was around lunchtime he thought it would be a good time to eat. If he remembered correctly he had to be at the academy by two and with roughly two hours to waste he figured he had enough time for his usual… or as he called it, his 'mandatory 15 a sitting' but that'd still leave him with a good hour to burn, maybe he'd train or find that lazy Nara bastard and join him for a quick session of cloud gazing…the day was perfect for it after all. Naruto entered his ramen stand of choice and gave a hearty smile to the girl working the register.

"Ohayo, Ayame-chan."

Said girl returned his greeting with one of her own genuine smiles before yelling out.

"Otou-san, Naruto-kun's here."

A loud voice boomed out from the kitchen with a playful tone.

" That usually means your usual 15 bowls eh?" The aged man chuckled. "guess I'll get started then."

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Shikamaru was just starting to lose himself in the magical-ness that was the sky when an almost scolding tutt broke him out of his hobby.

"Tutt tutt, Shikamaru, for someone so smart you're awfully predictable."

The Nara boy didn't even have to look to know who it was.

"And to what do I owe the visit of your troublesome self?" Shikamaru sighed out.

Naruto lay down beside him and engaged the man in conversation in his all too cheery attitude.

"Nothing much Shika-chan, just thought I'd make your day more miserable." He teased.

"Hn, troublesome." Shikamaru snorted. Naruto couldn't help but let a small chuckle escape him and let himself be lost in the slow but mesmerizing dance of the clouds. It was an odd sight to see the usually energetic Naruto in some sort of stationary state, but Naruto would usually come and seek out Shikamaru's company whenever he had something on his mind, even if he said nothing to the Nara he felt being around Shikamaru gave him a somewhat clearer head. Despite the complaints he knew the Nara boy never really cared about Naruto disrupting his sessions however it was still undecided if the boy actually enjoyed Naruto's company. In the end Naruto ended up having the usual talk about becoming a jonin sensei that he'd been having a lot as of late with Shika. Naruto was definitely nervous, but he was also damned excited, Shikamaru couldn't help but smirk at seeing that something actually made the boy nervous. Apparently he wanted to make a good impression and be a really 'cool' sensei, unlike Kakashi's lazy and Jiraiya's perverted asses. Although he had no qualms over the fact that Kakashi and Jiraiya were definitely 'cool'. He had spent the last hour and a bit just thinking…gazing at the clouds. Shikamaru broke the silence and brought up a coincidental question as Naruto had just been thinking about the man in said question.

"Have you been hanging out with Kakashi lately Naruto?"

Naruto raised a curious eyebrow at this question.

'_Odd_.' He thought.

"Not really, why?"

"I think he's rubbing off on you." Shikamaru stated plainly.

"Huh? How so?"

'_If this is anything about me being a pervert…_'

Shikamaru sighed before getting up and dusting himself off.

"If you hadn't noticed, it's 10 minutes past 2…guess who that means is late?"

Naruto had long since disappeared after the words '10 minutes past 2' left the Nara's mouth causing the boy to chuckle…he could only imagine what Naruto was thinking.

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'_Crap crap crap! I bet that bastard Shikamaru waited for 10 minutes to pass on purpose before telling me the time!_ _And here I was thinking I could make a 'cool' impression on my squad…unless…'_ Naruto found himself remembering whenever Kakashi was late and an idea brought itself to the forefront of his mind. '_Well I guess that could work…although it'll just make that bastards claim about Kakashi rubbing off on me stick more…bah, what do I care, like he'll ever find out."_

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_15 minutes earlier_.

"…And finally team 10 will consist of Sarutobi Konohamaru, Hyuuga Hanabi and Hokazu Takusa. Your Sensei will be Uzumaki Naruto."

Konohamaru who had barely been paying attention snapped his head in Iruka's direction

when he heard what he thought was Naruto's name.

"Iruka-sensei who did you say our Sensei was?"

Iruka smirked before answering.

"Uzumaki Naruto, is that a problem Konohamaru?"

"WHAT! When did Naruto become a Sensei!"

Before Iruka could reply Konohamaru burst out again.

"I can't believe Naruto is gonna be my Sensei…this…THIS. IS. AWESOME!" (A/N: Sparta*? Can't help my lame jokes rofl) Iruka couldn't help the smile that displayed itself on his face. Konohamaru was jumping for joy whilst his teammates looked at him, one with indifference and the other with disgust.

"Alright settle down Konohamaru, you 3." Iruka said pointing to the newly appointed team ten. "Go to room 105, your Sensei will arrive shortly."

Konohamaru's moment of glee was stomped out as he realised the people following him to room 105, he could only guess that meant they were his teammates. He inwardly groaned. Hanabi was cold and indifferent and Takusa wasn't much better. He wasn't cold but rather it seemed he almost didn't know how to communicate with anyone on a basic social level. Konohamaru pouted and turned his head to his 'teammates'.

"Why do you guys have to be on MY team? It almost takes away the fun of having Naruto as a sensei."

Takusa just continued following and didn't show any sign that he had heard what Konohamaru had said, Hanabi on the other hand scowled at his words. Apart from being a bit dense Konohamaru was a fairly competent ninja. In some way she was grateful to have him on her team rather then some of the failures and oafs that could have been. What irked her slightly was the fact that this Uzumaki Naruto was to be her Sensei. She didn't know much of him apart from the occasional rumours of him saving the village countless times and his seemingly unprecedented strength. She however believed these rumours were either over exaggerated or completely false. There was no way the oaf she had seen during the Chunin exams who fought Neji those years ago could improve so much. Sure he had won, but she believed it to be a fluke if anything. Other then his Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, his lack of strategy, poor Taijutsu and lack of many other basics were very obvious. Her father was supposed to have pulled some strings to get her the best possible sensei, so how is it that she ended up with this man as her sensei. She would have to ask her father later. As the group reached the door marked '105' Konohamaru opened the door expectantly, only to be disappointed when no one was inside. Konohamaru looked at the clock hanging on the wall and noticed they were a few minutes early. With a sigh he sat himself down on one of seats, it had been at least a year since he had seen Naruto. His old boss had certainly kept himself busy over the past few years and he was eager to see how he now measured up to the man; although if the rumours and stories were anything to go by, his chances of impressing him weren't looking that great. As a few minutes turned into a quarter of an hour, Konohamaru couldn't help but wondering…

'_Where the HELL is he?'_

123456

'_Finally I made it._'

By now Naruto was a good 20 minutes late but it didn't mind him, after all, he had the perfect plan.

'_Alright, slouched back, check. Sheepish grin, check. Uncaring demeanour, check.'_ Inwardly he thanked Kakashi for this, he had seen it done a hundred times before and he knew it was almost full proof…Almost. He took a deep breath before opening the door and entering room 105.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Upon inspection, the voice had come from Konohamaru. Inwardly he smirked, but he couldn't let emotions show, lest he botch his full cover act.

With a lazy glance he looked at the boy and addressed him with a sheepish look.

'_Here goes._' He thought.

"Yes, well you see, this black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way around, then…then…uhhh…what happened next?" Naruto put his hand under his chin in a thoughtful gesture.

'_Hmmm, turns out these things are harder to come up with then I gave Kakashi credit for._'

Konohamaru face palmed at his idols 'lame' attempt at an excuse… a pathetic excuse of an excuse at that. A certain Hyuuga could be heard muttering 'idiot' and that made Naruto's eyebrow twitch but he ignored it.

"Bah, whatever, rooftop, 5 minutes." When Naruto disappeared Hanabi turned to Konohamaru and gave him a smirk that said 'and that's your hero?' Konohamaru returned the look with a glare that said 'shut the hell up.'

123456

Naruto sat perched on the railing of the top of the Academy waiting for his newly appointed charges to arrive.

"Well that went well." He muttered sarcastically. "And here I was hoping to make the impression that I was super cool." He pouted. He was so busy grumbling at his failures that he didn't even notice the Hyuuga had arrived and couldn't help but think that her Sensei's pout was…cute. She frowned at those thoughts, she wasn't one to be attracted to someone who was good looking, she judged mostly off hierarchy and if the person was annoying or not, but that isn't to say she would like an ugly person. She pushed these thoughts aside when Naruto faced her and nonchalantly asked.

"Something on my face Hyuuga?"

She hadn't really realised until he called her out that she'd been study his face rather intently. She blushed slightly, a feat that not many had ever seen and turned her head to the side with a 'hmph', she really only did this to hide her blush, but she knew she wasn't fooling anyone when she heard her Sensei start chuckling. The next minute or 2 were spent in uncomfortable silence…well for Hanabi at least, that jerk of a Sensei wouldn't stop looking at her, and every time she turned to look his way she'd always catch his gaze prompting her to look away again just as quickly. Naruto on the other hand was trying to control himself from bursting out laughing. He was having a blast unnerving the young girl, he knew she was probably just avoiding eye contact out of embarrassment of being caught staring earlier, but he couldn't blame her if she stared, although he really hoped she wasn't going to turn out like her sister and faint every time he addressed her. Konohamaru and Takusa arrived shortly after much to the relief of Hanabi. When they seated themselves Naruto started going through the same routine Kakashi had when he was a genin.

"Alright, Introductions, I wanna hear your name, likes, dislikes, hobbies and dreams. As a dear friend once said, if you're gonna ask someone's name it's polite to give yours first so I'll start things off. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, I like ramen but dislike the 3 minutes you have to wait for the instant ramen to cook. As for my hobbies, I don't really have any at the moment and as for dreams…I'm gonna be the Rokudaime." He finished with a smile. He surveyed their reactions, as many would think announcing yourself to be the next Hokage was quite the bold statement. Konohamaru naturally snuck him a subtle nice guy pose, Takusa looked slightly interested and Hanabi just narrowed her pale pupil-less eyes at him.

'_To state that like he was talking about the weather… Either he's incredibly strong or incredibly stupid.' _Little did Hanabi know he was a bit of both.

"Alright, you, how about you introduce yourself." Naruto said pointing to Takusa. He knew his name, the reason he addressed him as 'you' was he didn't really believe in calling people by their name when they didn't know you knew it. A silly and inconsequential habit of his but he thought it had something to do with being polite.

The boy stood and bowed his head to his Sensei as he started his introduction.

"My name is Hozuku Takusa." The brown haired blue eyed boy droned out monotonously. " I have no likes or dislikes." Naruto raised an eyebrow at this although it didn't really surprise him and rather confirmed his suspicions on who he'd been trained by.

"My hobbies are what I am told they are as are my dreams."

This caused everyone to raise an eyebrow.

'_Obviously they have yet to teach the boy about subtlety.'_

When the boy took a seat on the ground he called to the next speaker.

"Hyuuga you're up." His commanding tone rather startled her a bit but she didn't let it show. Regardless she rose and introduced herself.

"My name is Hyuuga Hanabi." She droned out as monotonously as Takusa.

'_Definitely a stick up her ass_.'

"My likes include training and anything that includes a civil conversation and proper manners."

'_If I didn't know any better I'd say half of that was addressed at me._'

"I dislike the weak, incompetent oafs and people whose gazes linger for too long." She said looking at Naruto.

'_Ok that was definitely directed at me._'

"My hobbies are…"

"Staring at my Sensei." Naruto interrupted with a smirk.

'_That'll teach her._'

Hanabi went bright red at his comment and stuttered slightly but continued on as if unaffected, whilst Konohamaru just gave a confused look as to what the comment meant.

"My dream is to become the head of the Hyuuga clan and prove my worth in doing so."

"Very good Hanabi-_**Chan**_ you can sit now."

The look on her face was priceless, although it only lasted a second before she covered it with her emotionless mask, although it didn't help that her face was now crimson, maybe being a jonin sensei wasn't going to be so bad after all. The now sitting Hanabi was seething.

'_That incompetent asshole, where does he get off teasing me, and why the hell is it working.' _She thought in a very un-Hyuuga like manner.

Without being told Konohamaru jumped straight up and started his introduction, he had just gotten past giving his name when Naruto interrupted him.

"Yeah, whatever Konohamaru I already know about you so you can just sit down." Naruto smirked at the boy's deflated ego.

"No fair boss." He could be heard muttering.

Naruto evaluated his team.

'_A walking robot, a miniature version of my younger self and a stuck up Hyuuga…all in all I'd say this team is pretty fucked…oh well, at least it'll be fun._'

"Alright, that's about it for today, but be sure to meet at training ground 11 tomorrow at 9am sharp for… survival training."

"Survival training? But we already did that at the academy." Konohamaru stated.

'_How nostalgic.'_ Naruto chuckled.

"Don't worry it's not your ordinary survival training, I'll explain it tomorrow. In any case this meetings about over, any questions?" He asked. When no one asked anything he gave them a curt nod before disappearing.

"Dismissed."

123456

'_Well that was certainly entertaining.'_ Naruto thought. '_But I still have to decide on what their 'survival training' is going to consist of…I don't want to outright plagiarize the bell test off Kakashi…but I can't think of anything else right now. Maybe I'll go spar with Neji and ask him…'_

123456

1 hour later.

Hanabi wandered aimlessly around the Hyuuga branch area. She was in deep thought about her 'Sensei'.

'_Addressing me as anything less than Hyuuga-san, such blatant disrespect, and to insinuate that I found him attractive…' _Hanabi snorted aloud at this thought.

'_There are a few people I need to talk to…'_ Her train of thought came to an end as the abrupt sound of laughter echoed through the air. Frowning slightly Hanabi slowly made her way to the room from which the laughter had originated, and as she did she started to hear voices.

"She really did huh?" A familiar voice chuckled.

"Haha, yeah, although I think it was more out embarrassment then anything." This voice also sounded strangely familiar…annoyingly so in fact. Hanabi inched closer to the door in an attempt to find out who it was, she would've used her byakugan to scan the room but it was a act that was frowned upon to do so on clan grounds.

"Speaking of which…" The second voice broke off. Suddenly the door in front of her opened to reveal none other then her shit grinning Sensei.

"It's not very polite to eavesdrop, Hanabi-chan."

Hanabi glanced inside the room to see Neji also giving her a cocky smirk, she then proceeded to give Naruto a icy glare.

"What're you doing here?" She questioned.

"Catching up with Neji, among other things, although I could ask you the same thing, what were you doing outside the door Hanabi? Trying to catch a glimpse of your sensei perhaps?" Neji couldn't help but indulge himself in a laugh as Hanabi's face became slightly red from both anger and embarrassment…she was trying to resist the urge to inflict bodily harm on her 'sensei' and her face was twisted into a scowl of displeasure.

"Shut up idiot." She growled. "If you don't have any other business here then leave."

She didn't really have the authority to kick Naruto off of branch property but he didn't know that.

"Well actually…" Naruto started while sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "I came to Neji to ask for some ideas on the test I was gonna give you guys tomorrow."

This caught Hanabi's attention.

"Test? What test? I thought we had survival training." Hanabi said narrowing her eyes.

"Oh right, I didn't explain. Well technically you're not actually a genin and this test is to see if you really are ready to become one." He explained.

A lot of things started to process rapidly in Hanabi's mind at this announcement but then one thing clicked.

"And you haven't even come up with a test?" Hanabi asked barely containing her rage, eye twitching at the man's incompetence. Naruto just gave a sheepish chuckle.

"W-well that's why I came to ask Neji for some ideas."

Hanabi took this opportunity to promptly leave the room, she was afraid that if the man showed any_more_ incompetence she wouldn't be able to control herself…that and her father had some explaining to do.

"You really are hopeless Naruto." Neji chuckled.

"Shut up Neji."

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_Naruto and Hanabi dashed through the forest, trying to track down their prey. Apparently the Kumo-nin thought they could just attack Konoha ninja and get away with it as they pleased. Needless to say they had already taken out the last 2 nin (no thanks to Naruto) and were in pursuit of the last one. Hanabi signalled them to stop as she saw an explosive tag on one of the trees up ahead. She was just about to disarm it when Naruto walked up to it._

"_I wondered what will happen if I channel chakra into this." He said._

_Hanabi's eyes widened as Naruto placed his hand on the tag._

"DON'T TOUCH THAT YOU IDIOT!" Hanabi yelled as she sat upright, she was sweating profusely, trying to get her bearings about her. When her senses came to her she realised she was in her bedroom.

'_Just a dream…_'

She sighed in relief before the dream of the blonde made her remember the events of last night. After being embarrassed yet again by her incompetent sensei she strode off to find her father and give him a piece of her mind. With every condescending remark she used in her argument of how pathetic Naruto was, Hiashi's grin only seemed to get wider and wider.

'_Since when does he grin?_' She thought.

When she finally asked why he had chosen Naruto as her sensei, he only shot her a smirk and said 'you'll see.' If Hanabi didn't know any better she would of thought he was mocking her. Nonetheless she shot him one last glare before going to bed, only for her so called sensei to haunt her dreams with his incompetence. As she looked at the time she had 40 minutes to get ready, she just hoped her oaf of a sensei wasn't going to be late again.

Dunno when I'll update this was more of a test of my writing skills. On a side note the title holds no valid context to the story at all, just couldn't think of anything better rofl but I might form the story around it. As for discussing how powerful Naruto is. When Naruto isn't in Sage or controlled bijuu form I would think his Taijutsu skills would be around low to mid jonin level. His Ninjutsu would definitely be high jonin to kage level. In this fic I'm gonna make him a Kage level fighter, naturally he probably is what with his sage and bijuu control but when he's not using them I'm gonna make him around Kakashi's level. But of course when he starts pulling out his Hiraishin and rasengan I'll make him just below kage level. But those are just my opinions and that's what I'm gonna roll with. As for the Test coming up next test, I don't wanna do the Generic bell test, if any of you have some ideas for a new test please don't hesitate to contribute. R&R gets free blowjobs.

MikkyTomby ~


	2. Chapter 2

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 2: **'Training'

A/N: Quick thanks to everybody who reviewed, I want to thank you all especially Tama Saga, The Endless One and Keikun4283. The first 2 were very insightful reviews whilst the latter made me laugh. Enjoy this chapter, I'll start getting into the story after this chapter.

Hanabi arrived at training ground 11 fashionably early, she hadn't been expecting to see anyone, but in the middle of the field stood a figure. As she got closer she could make out the brown hair and recognised the figure as Takusa. This somewhat surprised her as the boy was never one to be early, or late for that matter. Oddly, he was always right on time, so she found herself wondering why he was early for a change. As she came up beside him she noticed him setting up what looked like a particularly nasty trap that when activated would send a countless amount of Kunai with explosive tags attached at a target. She was about to question him when he beat her to it.

"What do you think of Uzumaki-sensei?" He asked still fidgeting with his trap.

This caused her to raise an eyebrow as she could actually count the number of times on one hand that he had spoken to someone of his own accord. _One_, this being the first time. Getting over her shock she answered her honest opinion.

"I think he is incompetent and has only proved to back up these accusations with his actions yesterday. I don't see how he is a jonin. Why do you ask?" She stated rather blandly. Takusa got up from his squatted position having finished rigging his trap and faced Hanabi.

"I think he is one of the most powerful Shinobi in the world and I wish to see that drawn out today." Hanabi simply snorted at this, but in her head conceded the point that she too wanted to see his true strength today.

"I take it that's what these traps are for?" She asked almost uninterestedly. All she got was a nod of acknowledgement before the boy set off to different parts of the training ground to set up more traps.

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A few minutes later Konohamaru showed looking quite tired, he gave a lazy 'Ohayo' then promptly lay down on the ground. She guessed that he would've gotten up around 8:30ish which would've given him an extra hour sleep in then academy would've, so she was curious as to why he was tired. She was about to ask him when she decided that she really didn't care so didn't bother asking. As the clock turned to nine Hanabi was sure Naruto was going to pull a repeat of yesterday. There was no sign of him and she couldn't help but get angry.

"Where the hell is he." She muttered.

"Where's who?" A voice asked from behind her. Hanabi's eyes widened, she hadn't even been able to tell when the presence appeared behind her. Reacting on instinct her right hand lashed out in the direction of the voice only for it to be caught effortlessly.

"Geez, calm down Hanabi, I was just asking a question." Hanabi looked up to see Naruto's face with a genuine look of confusion on it. She scowled slightly at how easily he had apprehended her before ripping her hand from his grasp and huffing. Naruto looked around and saw Konohamaru asleep on the ground, but he couldn't see Takusa.

"Where's Hokazu?" He asked curiously. He didn't seem the type to be late.

'_Probably setting up more traps to flay your ass._' Hanabi thought smirking.

"He's around." She replied offhandedly.

Naruto frowned at her vague answer.

"I see." He then set off to kick Konohamaru's sleeping form in the ribs softly before saying much to cheerily.

"Rise and shine Kono-chan."

Konohamaru groggily opened his eyes muttering something that sounded like 'who.. fak kid meh ribs.' His sight met the overly happy look of his sensei and he couldn't help but groan.

"How can you be so happy this early…"

Naruto chuckled at Konohamaru's state.

"Why are you so tired so late Konohamaru?"

Konohamaru sighed before dusting himself off and getting up.

"If you really want to know, I was so nervous about this test I couldn't sleep, so instead I trained all night."

"Huh? I told you it was survival training, how'd you know it was a test?" Naruto asked.

Konohamaru yawned.

"I went to Ichiraku's yesterday to get some ramen and met up with Moegi and she explained it all to me. Apparently her sensei is straight forward, unlike someone." He

pouted.

At this point Takusa decided to show up with all his indifferent splendour. Naruto decided not to question him on his slight tardiness; instead he got right down to things.

" Alright, now that we're all here, it's time to start the real test to see if you're worthy of the title genin." At these words Konohamaru's and Hanabi's faces steeled with conviction. Naruto proceeded to put his hands into the crossed tiger seal.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no jutsu." When these words were spoken an enormous cloud of smoke formed behind Naruto. When it cleared the genin-soon-to-be's went wide eyed; standing behind Naruto was 900 Kage bunshins.

"Alright, for this test you'll each be given a group of 300 Kage bunshins that have to be destroyed within the 2 hour time limit. You may use any and all jutsus and if you can't finish the test in time…well we'll come to that if it happens. Any questions?"

"Heh, uhh boss, isn't 300 clones each a bit overkill?" Konohamaru asked nervously.

"Not really Konohamaru, especially when you can even the odds." Naruto hinted.

'_Plus I only put a minimal amount of Chakra into each clone, I don't think the council would be to happy if I failed you guys.'_

A look of realisation bestowed itself upon Konohamaru's face.

"Why didn't I think of that!"

Naruto chuckled.

"So are you guys ready?"

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Hanabi had been fighting the bunshins for about 10 minutes now. She was surprised when Konohamaru used the Kage bunshin technique as well, although he could only make about 50 clones. The odd thing she noticed was that although Naruto's clones were sheer in numbers, they were quite easily dispatched. She also noticed when she activated her byakugan that Konohamaru's clones seemed to have slightly more chakra in them then Naruto's but she put this down to Naruto having to make 18 times more bunshins then her teammate. Hanabi had dispatched around 70 clones so far, whilst Konohamaru had defeated about 100. She couldn't be so sure about Takusa as he had long since fled into the woods, most likely luring the clones into traps. The more clones she took down the less there were to attack her simultaneously meaning less dodging and more attacking as time went on. However time also bought tiredness and she was beginning to get short of breath and get low on chakra. Hyuuga's weren't meant for long drawn out battles, they specialised in disabling the opponent quickly in order to prevent such a situation, however with her opponents being bunshins, it seemed a long battle was inevitable.

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25 minutes passed and Konohamaru dispatched his last clone. Naruto smirked.

' _Just as I thought, Konohamaru finished first.'_ At this point another clone of Takusa's group was dispelled and Naruto grimaced at the memories. '_I guess that's what he was doing when he arrived late, lucky I decided to use Bunshins for this test…that trap might've actually gotten me. No doubt he'll be finished soon too… as for the Hyuuga…_'

Konohamaru came up to Naruto jumping for joy, body running on adrenaline alone as he was probably suffering Chakra exhaustion.

"See that Naruto, I beat all those bunshins, that means I passed right?" Naruto nodded at him not really paying attention, his attention was trained on Hanabi. Konohamaru turned to look at her just in time to see her get knocked to the ground. She rose sluggishly, sweating profusely and breathing raggedly.

"H-hey boss, she doesn't look too good, maybe you should call off your clones."

"The only thing that would do would serve to wound her pride. If she wants to wear herself into the ground it's her decision." He replied seriously.

"So you're not going to help her?" Konohamaru asked slightly shocked at the coldness of his idols tone.

"Konohamaru, this is a test, she has to pass on her own, I can't just go helping her on a whim. Out in the field you can't just expect someone to come and save you." He replied emotionlessly. '_Hopefully this knucklehead gets it, I hate acting like a jerk. Although teamwork wasn't required to pass, I had a feeling this situation might arise.'_ He groaned inwardly.

"Well then what the hell are teams for!" Konohamaru replied.

"Why don't you give me the answer to that question?"

Hanabi was then knocked to the ground a second time, and that's when Konohamaru made his decision.

"Damn it, Kage bunshin no jutsu." Konohamaru managed to make 5 clones despite being severely drained. Just as one of Naruto's bunshins neared Hanabi, Konohamaru dispelled it with a flying kick to the face. Hanabi looked up to see Konohamaru's hand extended to her.

"Need some help?" He asked with a grin.

Usually Hanabi would've scowled at this offer, it was if he was belittling her ability as a Shinobi, but at that moment, she was to tired care. With grateful nod in his direction she took his hand and they set to work taking out the last 30 Kage bunshins.

Whilst this happened Takusa took the liberty to appear in front of his sensei. In a rare display of emotion Takusa actually glared at Naruto.

"Why did you hold back?" Takusa asked with a hint of anger.

Naruto raised his eyebrow.

"What are you talking about?" He asked playing the ignorant card.

"The chakra I sensed in those bunshin, of all their chakra together, was only equal to ¼ of your total _after_ you used the technique. This either means you purposely limited the chakra of each bunshin or you have extremely poor chakra control because the technique is supposed to distribute the users chakra evenly among the clones. I doubt it was the latter." Takusa said accusingly.

'_A sensor type?_' Naruto thought with an impassive expression.

"What you said is true, but remember, this is a test for genin level Shinobi, Konohamaru and Hanabi haven't had the luxury of being apprenticed at a young aged like you."

Takusa flinched at this, no one was meant to know about that. Reluctantly he let the matter drop. If he was truthful to himself, it wasn't just because of his mission that he was disappointed he didn't get to see the full extent of Naruto's powers. He found such feelings of curiosity distracting and slightly unnerving, he was supposed to be devoid of feelings, and what was this annoyance that was building up towards his sensei's reply, he would have to review this 'incident' at a later date.

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As the last Kage bunshin charged the genin-hopefuls, both Hanabi and Konohamaru aimed a punch to the bunshins face. Konohamaru however lost his footing due to exhaustion and bumped into Hanabi causing her punch to redirect itself to the bunshins nether regions. The clone needless to say had a shocked expression on his face but nonetheless dispelled itself as the pain was too great. For the second time that day Naruto paled at the memories of the bunshin and found his hand going to his groin in a protective gesture. Shaking it off, he walked over to the exhausted lumps that were now officially his team with Takusa in tow. Naruto had an approving smile on his face as he looked over the 2 splayed out on the ground. Konohamaru weakly turned his head to face Naruto.

"S-so, do I pass _**now**_?"

Naruto chuckled and nodded in kind.

"Yes you all pass.I suppose this is the part where I congratulate you all. I would offer to take you all out for ramen… but it seems that apart from Takusa you two will be bed bound for awhile."

"Ramen you say!" Konohamaru tried to get up only to find that gravity wasn't on his side and promptly collapsed back to the ground groaning. Hanabi rolled her eyes at this display but allowed herself a small smile. Takusa however questioned Naruto.

" How come Hyuuga-san passes. Weren't the mission parameters to destroy 300 Kage bunshin each? I know for a fact she destroyed less than 280." He stated quite blandly.

"For someone so sharp Takusa, you didn't seem to hear me correctly. What I said was '_you'll each be given a group of 300 Kage bunshins that have to be destroyed within the 2 hour time limit' _I did not specify that you alone had to destroy all 300 yourself. Truthfully if you had all stayed together as a group it would have helped all of you finish this task much faster and with greater ease, it wasn't required to pass but I wanted to see if you could read underneath the underneath and encourage your teamwork, although it seems you and Konohamaru did well enough on your own to not need it." Takusa processed these words for a moment before nodding his understanding.

"I see."

" From now on, we are officially team 10. I'll give you guys the week off, so meet back here in 7 days, same place same time. Well I guess that's all, just don't forget to rest up because we'll be taking on missions soon. Ja ne." Naruto was just about to leave when Konohamaru called out.

"H-hey, boss, you're not going to just leave us here are you?"

Naruto gave him a blank stare before coming to realisation and laughing nervously. Inwardly, he smacked himself on the head for nearly leaving 2 exhausted students a good mile or 2 from any civilisation. With a cross of his hands Naruto formed a single Kage bunshin which picked up Konohamaru. Naruto himself then proceeded to pick up Hanabi who started to protest.

"W-what are you doing?" She asked stuttering whilst trying to hide her light blush from the contact.

"Taking you home obviously, unless you want me to leave you to find you own way?" He asked smirking. She tried to scowl at him but didn't answer. Naruto took her silence as approval and started on his way to the Hyuuga compound whilst his Kage bunshin took Konohamaru home.

He walked in silence, carrying Hanabi bridal style, the sun shone brightly as it had done the previous day. The walk was uneventful and Naruto kept to a slow pace, simply enjoying his surroundings. Hanabi gave in to the urges of rest and fell asleep on the way. In her sleep she seemed to grip Naruto's shirt and snuggle up to him more which Naruto thought was ironic as she had been reluctant for him to hold her in the first place. When he neared the gate of the Hyuuga compound he gave a curt nod to the guard on duty who let him pass. Naruto coming to the Hyuuga compound was a common occurrence and as such, most guards tended to let him in without the standard procedure.

Naruto was walking down the halls of the main house trying to find Hanabi's room to no avail. He was about to give up when a familiar voice called out behind him.

"Naruto-kun?"

Naruto turned around to see none other then Hinata.

"Oh, hey Hinata-chan, glad you found me, do you know where Hanabi's room is?"

Hinata's eyes widened slightly when she saw a sleeping Hanabi and the mention of her room.

"W-what are you going to do with her?" She asked blushing and slightly jealous.

Naruto realised the implications and quickly dismissed her train of thought.

"No, no, nothing like that Hinata-chan, I was just giving her and the rest of my squad the genin test and she collapsed from exhaustion after it." Naruto informed her.

"Y-you have a squad?" She asked curiously.

"Oh right, I guess not many people know. I recently got promoted to jonin and thought I'd take a squad on. So where did you say Hanabi's room was?" Naruto asked.

"Ano, it's this one." Hinata pointed to a door across the hall.

"Ah, thanks, see you later Hinata-chan." Naruto waved as he walked to Hanabi's room.

When he opened the door, the sight that greeted him…well let's just say he wasn't very surprised. Plain white walls, white drapes, white bed spread, wooden floor, a white dresser with no furnishings on it. Everything was so…plain. Naruto made his way over to the bed and pulled back the blanket before putting Hanabi under the sheets…or at least trying to, the Hyuuga girl seemed to be putting up a pretty big fight for Naruto's shirt and he could do little to save it from her clutches. He tried tugging softly…then tugging forcefully but the sleeping Hyuuga was latched onto him like a pitbull. Rather then rip one of favourites shirts or risk waking her he decided the best thing to do was to take of his shirt. His had his haori to cover him up anyway, little did he know what consequences this course of action would have.

A/N:

No the consequences aren't gonna be serious but it might included a baffled Hanabi and a jealous Hinata. Rushing this A/N… had writers block writing this. Uhh update…Not sure quite busy ETA 5 days. Enjoy, reviews always help me past a block :D.

MT goes shunshin.


	3. Chapter 3

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 3:**

A/N: Early update hence only 3.2 words. Bottom A/N for more details.

Quick thanks for all the reviews again, sorry for making you cry endless D: u probably cry again but next chap 5k.

Shademaster: Yes, I know what you mean about 13 to 18yr old. I however wanted to get them to know each other a bit before they got into anything, like those fics where Naruto just straight away asks her out when they the same age. There will be a time skip within the next 6 chaps, of 2-3years so that will even it out a bit. Action will be coming next chap. ENJOY! (P.s I hope the humorous scenes…were … humorous.)

_(5 sentence recap, read it to jog your memory as the two scenes link together.)_

Naruto made his way over to the bed and pulled back the blanket before putting Hanabi under the sheets…or at least trying to, the Hyuuga girl seemed to be putting up a pretty big fight for Naruto's shirt and he could do little to save it from her clutches. He tried tugging softly…then tugging forcefully but the sleeping Hyuuga was latched onto him like a pitbull. Rather then rip one of his favourites shirts or risk waking her he decided the best thing to do was to take off his shirt. His had his haori to cover him up anyway; little did he know what consequences this course of action would have.

Neji had just finished his sparring with Hiashi and was on his way out of the main branch housing until he spied what looked like a very suspicious scene. Neji looked into the opened door of Hanabi's room just in time to see Naruto towering over the sleeping Hanabi, removing his top. His eyes bulged out of his head and he ran into the room.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING NARUTO!" Neji screamed.

Naruto just looked at Neji with a relieved expression.

"Ah Neji, good timing, I need you to help me out with something." Naruto said glancing to Hanabi. Neji spluttered and choked at what he thought Naruto was insinuating.

"S-SHE'S 13 NARUTO, THERE'S NO WAY I'M HELPING YOU!" Naruto just gave him a confused look.

'_What the hell does that have to do with anything?_' Naruto ignored the first part of his sentence and continued on.

"But she won't let go of it." Naruto pouted.

"L-let go of what?" Neji asked paling.

"What do you think?" Naruto asked sarcastically whilst looking down at his shirt, although from Neji's angle, Naruto looking 'down' gave him a completely different idea.

"GET THE HELL OUT!" Neji yelled in fury.

"BUT SHE WON'T LET GO OF IT AND I ONLY HAVE 2 OF THEM!" Naruto pleaded. Neji went wide eyed.

"Y-you…you have _2_?….of _**THEM**_?" He asked incredulously.

This exchange of ignorance of both sides went on for what seemed like a life time mostly revolving around Neji questioning Naruto how he got 2 and how he could get them. Needless to say Hanabi eventually woke up and the sight that meet her made her wonder if she was in a dream. The material in her hand was exuding a powerful smell that she found intoxicating and when she looked up, a lean body with a defined 6 pack greeted her. She had a dreamy smile on her face like she was in la la land and couldn't help hide the blush on her face. She reached out and touched the mans stomach.

"Uhh… Hanabi?"

The man knew her name! Her gaze started to trail up the mans body slowly, that is until it reached his face.

"Do you mind letting go of my shirt now?"

Hanabi snapped wide awake and did a double take from the defined body to the face. Blushing madly and not knowing how she had gotten into this situation Hanabi quickly withdrew her hand from its groping and thrust his shirt at him.

"Wait a second!" Neji yelled." She was holding onto your shirt!"

"Huh? Yeah, why else would I take off my shirt?" Naruto asked.

Neji face vaulted to the ground. Naruto then quickly explained the situation to both the embarrassed Hyuuga's. Hanabi being embarrassed for obvious reasons, whilst Neji for actually believing he could have 2. Luckily Naruto didn't pick up on Neji's train of thought otherwise he would have most likely been utterly humiliated. With his shirt on his back where it belonged Naruto headed out off the premises. It was 'that' day of the week where he would go visit his brother.

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Naruto headed over to the memorial stone, the place where team 7 had originally taken the bell test and passed. As he shunshin'd into existence, he found a familiar presence already there. The man who he called sensei raised his one visible eye up from his book.

"Yo." He greeted with a lazy wave. Naruto inclined his head in greeting.

"So who are visiting today Kakashi-sensei. Didn't you have a genin team to fail?"

Kakashi finished the page he was reading then deftly shut his book and pocketed it.

"Didn't you have a genin team to pass?" Kakashi retorted lazily.

Naruto sighed.

"I already passed my team an hour ago sensei. How late are you this time?"

Kakashi lifted his head to sun to get an estimation of the time.

"Judging from the sun I'd say about 4 hours." Naruto looked at Kakashi curiously.

"Isn't that a new record or something?"

Kakashi gave an eye smile.

"I wouldn't know, I don't keep track."

Naruto chuckled.

'_Of course he doesn't keep track, he can't even keep track of the time…same old Kakashi-sensei.'_

"Well, like you said, I have a team to go fail. Say hi to Sasuke for me Naruto-kun. Ja ne."

With that, he left in a swirl of leaves to his probably pissed-the-hell-off students. Naruto pouted.

"You coulda just said hello to him yourself." He grumbled.

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It had been 3 days since Naruto had passed team 10, it was also around lunch time and Naruto found himself getting hungry. He was wondering if Konohamaru and Hanabi would be rested enough to take him up on his offer of ramen today. He thought of inviting Takusa but remembered that he had no listed place of residence, so his location was anyone's guess. His stomach was beckoning for him to fill it with ramen, but that would have to wait until _after_ he checked up on his team, and if he was lucky they would be willing and able to join him. So with that thought in mind Naruto made his way to the Hyuuga compound.

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Hiashi thrust his hand forward in perfect Jyuuken form, Hanabi saw the attack coming and moved her head to side just as he released the chakra of his strike making her hair flap wildly. Before Hanabi could counter attack however Hiashi made use of his outstretched limb and grabbing Hanabi by the back of the neck forced her to the ground. She stayed on the ground for a lengthened amount of time catching her breath before Hiashi told quite simply to 'get up'. Hanabi fell back into her Jyuuken stance only for Hiashi to put his hand up, gesturing their match was over.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Uzumaki-san?"

Naruto walked out into the area they were training and gave a small smile.

"Nothing much Hiashi-san, just thought I'd ask if Hanabi wanted join me for lunch." Hiashi narrowed his eyes at Naruto although there was a slight playfulness in them.

"And what are your intentions for this?" He asked.

'_Geez, what's with these Hyuuga's and thinking I have some 'hidden intentions'. _

"Well as a celebration of sorts for her passing the genin test I thought I'd treat her and Konohamaru… although I haven't asked Konohamaru yet."

Hiashi closed his eyes before coming to a conclusion.

"Very well. Normally I wouldn't take time out of Hanabi's training for 'lunch' as you so call it, but getting to know your team is also crucial part of working as one." He then turned to Hanabi and addressed her accordingly.

"Hanabi, you will be accompanying Uzumaki-san to lunch today. " It wasn't a question.Hanabi grimaced but reluctantly nodded, its not like she had a choice in the matter.

"Meet me out front in 5minutes then we'll go pick up Konohamaru."

"What about Hokazu-san?" Hanabi asked. Not that she really cared, but what with her upbringing in politeness and such, she couldn't help but feel it was rude to leave him out. Naruto turned to her and scratched the back his head nervously.

"Heh, well, I don't exactly know where he lives…"

Hanabi frowned at this.

"Aren't Jonin sensei's supposed to know this kind of stuff?"

Naruto put his hands up in a defensive gesture.

"Hey, it's not my fault he has no listed place of residence. Probably the doing of those old geezers on the council." He then realised what he said, and who he had said it in front of as Hiashi gave him an icy glare.

"I mean, not that you're an old geezer, Hiashi-sama." He laughed nervously. Hiashi's glare lessened at the use of 'sama' and allowed himself a small smirk.

'_At least the boy knows his place._' He thought smugly

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As Naruto walked to Konohamaru's apartment, he couldn't help but feel like eyes were boring into his back. After another minute he couldn't stand it anymore and turned around to see none other then Hyuuga Hanabi glaring at him. Even when he caught her gaze she didn't stop glaring, it was like she thought if she glared really hard his head would catch on fire. Naruto groaned.

"What are you so angry about?"

"I don't see the point of this 'celebration', the only thing it will succeed in doing is cutting into my training time." She stated rather annoyed.

Naruto sighed.

"Your father explained it didn't he? Or were you not listening?" He asked rhetorically.

"Besides I gave you the week off to rest, you shouldn't be training when you're still not completely recovered."

She scowled at him.

"I am completely recovered."

Naruto rolled his eyes at her stubbornness.

"You're not fooling anyone with your high and mighty act Hyuuga. I can tell just from the way you're walking that your muscles haven't completely recovered yet, and I doubt you got that from your hour of light sparring this morning."

She huffed but didn't reply; in her head she knew he was right. She wasn't, in all technicality, _'FULLY'_ recovered, but she hardly saw how slight muscle pain could hinder her performance. With a sigh she decided she might as well _TRY_ to enjoy this outing, but she still didn't like the company. A 'We're here' brought her out of her thoughts and she looked up to see rather nice looking apartment, nothing like the rundown one she had imagined, although she supposed being the grandson of the Sandaime did have its perks after all. She was wondering what was taking Naruto so long to knock on the door when she realised him inhaling a surreal amount of air. His chest bulged and just when she thought he was going to perform some type of jutsu to blow the door down…well, something else happened. With a large exhale Naruto smashed his hand on the door repeatedly whilst yelling.

"RISE AND SHINE KONO-CHAN!"

What ensued was a loud banging noise from inside the apartment followed by a 'DAM YOU NARUTO!' Seconds later a disgruntled Konohamaru opened the door still in his pyjamas. Konohamaru was about to go off at Naruto when he realised who was with him.

"Huh, what're you doing here?" He asked pointing a finger to Hanabi.

Hanabi started saying something about rude to point at someone when Naruto cut her off.

"Get some clothes on Konohamaru it's ramen time!" Naruto exclaimed.

Konohamaru's tired look turned into one of, what Lee and Gai would call, '_Youth_' as he heard ramen mentioned.

"O-ONE SEC! I'll be right out!" He yelled slamming the door in their faces, hurrying inside to change.

"Idiot." Hanabi muttered.

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Shikamaru was enjoying his beef ramen, something he rarely indulged in. He had never been into ramen, at least until Naruto practically forced it down his throat. In all honesty he didn't mind eating any type of food, so whenever he was feeling hungry he'd just stop off at the place that was the least 'troublesome distance away' to eat. Today that just so happened to be Ichiraku ramen. He had started on his second bowl when he heard the all familiar whining of Naruto's so-called rival.

"But boss, come on, I've already learned the rasengan why can't you teach me the rasen-shuriken?"

The voice that he recognised as Naruto laughed and went into the same old explanation.

"Like I've told you before Konohamaru, as much as you think you are ready, I'd rather not have you killing us all when you tried to learn it."

The two entered the shop with a Hyuuga following.

"That's what you always say, you're no fun." He pouted. Naruto just smiled and ruffled his hair.

"And that's what I'll keep saying until I think you're ready."

Shikamaru tried his best to hide in the corner but Naruto with his renowned power of 'finding people who're trying to hide'…found him…

"Hey Shikamaru, what're you doing here?" Naruto asked in his usual happy mood.

The Nara couldn't help but smirk.

"What do people usually do at a place that serves food?"

"Ha, Ha, Shikamaru." Naruto replied sarcastically smile never leaving his face.

Shikamaru sighed.

"Well if you must know, I just came back from a short training session with my genin squad when I got hungry. This being the least troublesome place to get to…you know the rest."

Naruto nodded and took a seat next to his friend motioning for the others to do the same.

"Yo, Naruto, you want the usual?" The ramen chef greeted.

"Of course Teuchi-ojisan." Teuchi grinned and turned to his two genin.

"And what about you two?"

"I'll have 5 pork and 5 chicken ramen!" Konohamaru stated enthusiastically.

"And what about you girly?" Teuchi asked.

Hanabi just sat there with a blank look on her face before answering.

"What does ramen taste like?"

Shikamaru covered his ears, knowing what was about to happen.

"Troublesome." He muttered.

"NANI!" Naruto and Konohamaru yelled in unison making all those unprepared nearly shit their pants.

"You've never had ramen before!" Konohamaru exclaimed.

"What have those cruel Hyuuga's been doing to you all this time Hanabi!" Naruto joined in. Konohamaru continued on about how bad her family was prompting for her to lose it and punch him in the face.

"Shut up you insect. Just tell me which one to get then." She huffed.

Konohamaru picked himself up off the ground like nothing happened.

" I suggest the pork ramen!" He exclaimed over dramatically.

"I'll have a bowl of the pork ramen." She said to Teuchi who just chuckled and went to get them ready.

About 5minutes later Hanabi got her bowl and look at it with a critical eye. She took a breath in and found it to smell pleasant enough, next she prodded it with her chopsticks for some unknown reason other then to delay the inevitable of actually eating the stuff. Naruto rolled his eyes at her little 'picky' display.

"Its just ramen Hanabi, it's not gonna eat _YOU_, it works the other way around."

Hanabi shot his a glare before raising some noodles to her mouth. She didn't really see any dignified way to eat them so she went and slurped it. She closed her eyes and let the flavours wash over her taste buds, chewing the noodles accordingly. She was so busy analysing them she didn't even realise how close Naruto had leaned to her face.

"Well?" He asked expectantly.

She opened her eyes and with a blank stare faced him.

"Acceptable."

Naruto beamed at her response and quickly pulled her into a hug.

"YOSH! Another ramen lover!" He exclaimed.

Hanabi rolled her eyes although she couldn't help the pink that tinted her cheeks at the hug. When Naruto let go of her he gave her a grin.

"Eat up, remember it's on me."

Hanabi nodded, blushing from the grin he was giving her, he looked so…She dug into her ramen to distract herself from those thoughts. But she had to admit, ramen was good.

Hanabi had stopped after 3 bowls whilst Konohamaru had stopped on his ninth not being able to finish his tenth bowl. Naruto however had finished his 15 and then looked at Konohamaru's left over bowl and asked 'you gonna eat that?' Shikamaru was more of a paced eater and was still eating like Naruto except he was only on his fifth. Hanabi had found the outing thus far to be rather enjoyable. As much as she didn't want to admit, Konohamaru was pretty interesting to talk to, he had told her stories of him as a little boy and challenging Naruto to be his rival. She hadn't cracked a smile but Konohamaru could tell she was at least listening. Konohamaru was just about to explain to Hanabi what Harem no jutsu was when Naruto finished his last bowl.

"Ahh, that was soo good. I don't think I can eat another bowl ever again." Naruto exclaimed in contentment. Shikamaru snorted.

"You say that, but then you come back 3 hours later for another 15 bowls."

"Of course! Who could ever get enough of ramen?" Konohamaru nodded his head in agreement whilst Hanabi giggled…suddenly everything went dead silent and everyone was looking at her with a funny look on their faces.

"Oh-my-gosh-it-laughed!" Konohamaru said with a look of disbelief on his face.

Naruto burst out laughing and Hanabi's face went red.

"Idiots." She muttered.

After everyone settled down Naruto started talking to his fellow Jonin sensei.

"Ne, Shikamaru, what have you been doing lately?"

"The same things I've been doing every time you ask me that question." He replied lazily.

"Aww, don't be like that Shika-chan." Naruto pouted.

"Troublesome, I've been training my genin squad for the Chunin exams. I held them back last year but I think they'll be ready by the time it comes around this year."

"And how's Asuma jr?"

"Troublesome as always, he's like a miniature version of yourself and Konohamaru. He only just turned 3 and he's already asking to learn jutsu and saying he'll become Hokage like his grandfather."

"Sounds like he and I would get along nicely."

Shikamaru smirked.

"Yeah you would, but I'm not letting you anywhere near him, he's gonna be my apprentice after all."

Naruto laughed.

"Yeah I know, he's all yours."

Shikamaru got up from his seat.

"Well, I guess I better head out now. Save Kurenai from being pestered all day."

With that Shikamaru headed out.

"Hey Shikamaru! Tell Asuma jr that if he needs a better sensei to come look for me."

A 'troublesome' could be heard followed by Naruto's laughter.

"Well, I guess that's our lunch over, glad you two could come along." Naruto said redirecting his attention to Konohamaru and Hanabi.

"You know me boss," Konohamaru grinned "whenever there's free ramen involved I'm always free." Naruto returned the grin.

"Thank you for the meal Uzumaki-sensei." Hanabi bowed her head slightly. Naruto laughed at her behaviour.

"Don't worry about being formal with me Hanabi, Naruto is fine and you don't need to bow either."

"H-hai." She responded.

"Well I suppose you guys wanna head home now. Lets go." Naruto said as he paid for the meal.

"Yosh, and you can show me a new jutsu on the way." Konohamaru added.

Naruto sweat dropped at this.

"Heh heh, no…"

Hanabi allowed herself a small smile.

'_Maybe they're not so bad after all._'

A/N:

I had hoped to add some story into this chapter but then it came out as a 'breaking it in' chapter. Im sorry if u cry at length but next chapter I promise 5k words! Next chapter will be the first mission. For the plot, I was thinking of something revolving around Sasuke, can't say much more w/o giving it away. Next chapter in 2-5 days, after that updates will come less often as my holidays are sadly coming to an end. R&R and have a good day D:


	4. Chapter 4

A/N:

Just a quick thanks to all reviews but more specifically:

_**Tristan76:**_ I'm honoured that you think that, hopefully I won't disappoint in the future.

_**Keikun4283:**_ I don't outright hate Sasuke, but I don't particularly like him. The plot will involve Sasuke but not as heavily as I first thought it would and it won't revolve around him.

_**Sabbath9997:**_ Give Hanabi a kiss? HAHAHAHAAHAHA. Lol that made me laugh, uhhh that's awhile off, generally I like stories that take a long ass time to develop relationships. Me personally, I like seeing the build up to the beginning of a relationship rather then the relationship itself. When the couple actually get together is usually when I lose interest in the story, but that's just me.

_**The Endless One:**_

Agree with you for the most part. I will definitely get Hanabi talking more, I'm not sure if I did so much this chapter but that's because I was focused on plot this time around. I've toned down Naruto's 'bubbly-ness' somewhat this chapter (At least I THINK I did.). I believe you were right in me making Naruto too happy and Hanabi glare for retarded reasons. I've toned down their characters a bit, but they'll still have emotion.

Ty for all reviews, and remember, if I don't mention you specifically it doesn't mean I didn't appreciate your review. Every single review is appreciated immensely and I'd like to thank you all one last time for taking the time to read my story. Hope you enjoy this chapter. I had a lot of writers block with this chap and I don't particularly like the first half of it, but watta ya gonna do eh :D ?

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 4:** More Then Just Remnants.

Even as the wretched man died, he didn't seem to lose one bit of his composure…in fact, despite his disgusting snake skin all but peeling off his defeated body…he laughed.

"_What the hell's so damn funny?" Naruto asked him. The rest of the Shinobi alliance stopped their celebrations as the man they thought to be dead laughed like the madman he was. Kabuto slowly but surely calmed himself from his outburst._

"_Are you really that naïve Naruto-kun?" He asked with a limitless amount of amusement present in his tone._

"_What are you talking about?" Kakashi asked coldly as he made his way to the man._

_Kabuto couldn't help the sinister grin that broke out on his face._

"_Y-you don't actually think you've won do you?" He asked slowly rising to his feet. _

_The hundred or so Shinobi in the area fell back into defensive stances, readying themselves for anything._

"_You think that I was as careless as that __**Mardara**__?" He spat the mans name. Kabuto judged the reactions of the Shinobi and laughed._

"_I am no fool. Do you really think I would wage a war without a back up plan?" _

"_It matters little." Gaara broke in. "You are exhausted of all your chakra and are on your last leg. You are finished." He stated flatly._

"_But it is not me who needs to live…I know I will die here today…But I also know that all of you will die soon enough." He stated with a crazed grin. Kakashi scowled at these words, he had had enough of this mans pitiful existence. With all the speed that his battle worn body could muster, he appeared behind a not-so-surprised Kabuto and lopped off his head. A fine spray of blood shot out where Kabuto's head was once attached to his body…and as the mans body fell, a feeling of unease settled upon the Shinobi alliance. There were no whoops of 'it's finally over' or 'we won'; only Kabuto's voice was heard, replaying itself over and over again in the heads of everybody present._

'_I know I will die here today…But I also know that all of you will die soon enough__.'_

_And for some reason, Kakashi couldn't help but believe every word of it._

Naruto shook his head. What that Nidaime snake bastard had said always seemed to creep back into his thoughts when he was alone. It had been 2 years since then and the part about 'you all dying' had yet to come about. He would always try to reassure himself, saying that it was probably some last minute sick joke the guy had thought up to keep them all looking over there shoulders every 10 seconds…At least that's what his head tried to rationalize to him, his instincts however were a whole other matter entirely. He hoped one of his students would show up and save him from his thoughts, hell he'd even be thankful if Takusa showed up, however given his penchant for showing up precisely on time that wasn't very likely.

'_Why'd I have to choose today to show up absurdly early,' _He thought_. 'It's just like that snake bastard to molest my thoughts even long after he's dead.'_ Naruto sighed, he had shown up an hour early, and there was no way he was going to leave himself alone…with…himself and expect to be sane by the end of the hour. Needing a distraction he crossed his fingers into the all too familiar seal with one thought in mind.

'_Might as well get some training in._'

504 Kage bunshins appeared. The extra four he had sit off to the side to meditate and gather Natural chakra. Over the years Naruto had been able to increase the amount of clones able to hold Natural chakra whilst fighting. It had been quite awhile since he had practiced the katas of frog kumite and in all honesty he had gotten quite rusty. Whilst he got the rest of his bunshins to warm up he joined his other 4 clones on the side and started meditating. Within minutes the familiar traits that came along with sage mode marred his eyes.

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She knew when she saw him coming her way that she should've just ignored him and kept walking. For some reason she thought that he would've been less annoying when he became a real ninja…but of course, he wasn't. She put it down as a mental note to always wake up early to avoid running into this incessant talking machine on her way to team meetings.

"I still can't believe it." Konohamaru continued. "Today is gonna be our first mission!"

Hanabi rolled her eyes, sure she was a bit excited, but comparing her excitement to Konohamaru's would be like comparing the dictionary definition of 'Youth' to Gai's understanding of the word.

He had been talking her ear off for the last 10 minutes as they made their way, ever so slowly, to the training grounds after having crossed paths. She let out an involuntary sigh of relief as they made it to grounds. She turned to Konohamaru to tell him to 'be quiet' when the ground seemed to shake underneath her. Off in the distance a huge cloud of dirt and debris rose into the air. Being the 2 curious ninja that they were, Konohamaru and Hanabi headed over to inspect the apparent explosion. When the dust cloud cleared the sight caused Hanabi to raise an eyebrow. Standing in the middle of the crater was Naruto with about 50 shadow clones surrounding him. What caused her to raise an eyebrow however was the strange markings around his eyes…and of course the eyes themselves. If she didn't know any better she would say it was some sort of doujutsu, but she never recalled Naruto having a Kekkei genkai. She watched as a clone rushed him from behind. The clone came within inches of Naruto before he turned around with lighting reflexes and threw a punch the clone's way. The punch missed by a fairly large margin but to Hanabi's surprise the clone went flying, despite the punch having missed, with the force of a hurricane and slammed into the wall of the crater dispelling itself. Naruto dropped his battle stance when he realised 2 of his students were watching him wide eyed and dispelled his remaining clones. He promptly jumped up out of the crater and landed next to Konohamaru.

"THAT WAS AWESOME! HOW'D YOU HIT THAT CLONE WHEN YOUR PUNCH MISSED? YOU GOTTA TEACH ME THAT!"

Naruto just smirked at his student's one-track mind. Naruto was about to ask where Takusa was, however he realised, only with the help of his sage increased perception, that he was hiding in a tree not too far off.

'_I wonder how long he was watching. Not that I showed any moves outside of sage mode. His stealth is impressive, I only noticed him when the distraction of training passed. I wonder where his skill level lies…he didn't actually show anything to give it away during the genin test as he relied purely on traps…interesting.' _Naruto thought rubbing his chin. Hanabi had been studying his face for a while trying to discern if she could place if it was indeed a Kekkei genkai she had seen before. Once Naruto had been brought of out his musing he noticed her questioning gaze.

"What?" He asked her.

"What kind of doujutsu is that?" She asked pointing to his eyes.

Naruto raised an eyebrow when he realised he was still in sage mode. He waited for the perfect time, and as soon as Hanabi blinked he released all his natural chakra.

"Huh?" Naruto questioned dumbly. "I don't have a doujutsu."

Hanabi rubbed her eyes to see if she was seeing things. One second his eyes are yellow and have orange lining around them and the next they are back to normal. She could've sworn they were different just a moment ago. She gauged Naruto's reaction to her question and she saw what she _thought_ was a look of genuine confusion. Normally she would've thought he had just released it and acted dumb, but she didn't _see_ any sort of dissipation and didn't _feel_ Naruto's chakra levels change at all, not that she was a sensor type, but standing less then a metre away from someone generally helped sensing their usage of chakra. She wasn't going to let it go that easily but she figured she'd drop it for now and move onto her next question.

"How did you hit that Kage bunshin?" She asked curiously. Konohamaru also leaned in closer to listen to the answer.

"Oh? That's easy." He smiled. "I punched it."

Konohamaru gave a disappointed pout at not being told how to do it and Hanabi sweat dropped, wondering if Naruto really was as stupid as he looked. She decided further questioning would just lead to similar answers so she left it at that. Naruto however gave a sigh of relief; he didn't really mind telling his students about sage mode, well 2 of his students. The only reason he feigned ignorance was because a certain spy boy was happily listening in on their conversation. It's not like it mattered even if the boy did find out about the effects of sage mode, it's not like it could be copied. He would've also happily told the council most of his jutsus if they hadn't asked in the way they did. It was more because of principle then anything that kept himself so tight lipped about his jutsus. If the snobby bastards on the council thought they could treat him like crap for most of his life, then expect him to just hand over his jutsus at their demands…Naruto snorted at the day that would happen.

It was at this time Takusa chose to reveal himself, jumping down into the clearing and joining the rest of his team.

"Glad you could join us Hokazu, mind telling me why you're tardy… again?" Naruto asked.

"I was fulfilling the duties of my mission." He stated truthfully.

"What!" Konohamaru exclaimed. "Why did he get a mission already?"

Both Naruto and Takusa chose to ignore the Sarutobi and Naruto just nodded his understanding.

'_Just as I thought._'

"Very well, now that we're all here I can begin. Normally after the final genin test, Sensei's will train their students for a lengthened amount of time before actually taking on a mission. However having seen what each of you can do I've decided that you are all more than ready for your first assignment." Naruto inwardly smirked at Konohamaru's gleeful expression. The 'missions' they were going to receive would no doubt involve menial chores like scrubbing crap out of dirty toilet bowls, he also noticed Takusa grimace at the thought of 'first assignment' as he was probably well aware of what that meant. Naruto finished up his speech and the team now headed to the Hokage tower to collect their first 'mission'.

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2 weeks of active duty later and Naruto could feel the tension rising. He could tell every single member of Team 10, apart from himself, was getting fed up with the pathetic excuse of a mission they called a 'D-rank'. If he hadn't been in the same situation when he started out as a ninja he would've let them stew for a bit longer. They were going to see Tsunade for another mission and his squad naturally thought this would mean the same boring 'waste of a day' mission, he however asked Tsunade specifically for a C-rank + mission. She had argued that they weren't ready but Naruto vouched for his team and said that they were wasting their talents doing D-ranks and that he wouldn't let any harm befall them. Reluctantly she agreed and told him to come by the following day and she would have something ready by then.

The genin of Team 10 trudged unenthusiastically into the Hokage's office, ready to be issued their new mission. Hanabi was slightly irked that they still hadn't gotten a mission that she didn't see as 'beneath her'. How they had roped her into cleaning up dog shit from the park and painting fences she would never know. The thing that infuriated her though was when she spoke to her father about it he had told her 'It will teach you some much needed humility.' If anyone needed a goddamn lesson in humility it was HIM! She however knew that pleading would do her little good, not that she would ever resort to such things as grovelling. So, whether she liked it or not, she was resigned to her fate of taking D-rank missions for the rest of her life…or so she thought.

"Yo, Baa-chan. So did you get that favour done I asked of you?" Naruto questioned.

Tsunade got slightly annoyed at the use of 'Baa-chan' but continued nonetheless.

"Yes, I did. I thought your genin would look a little more excited about getting a C-rank though, maybe I shouldn't have bothered taking the time to get one for you if they are so unappreciative." Tsunade sniffed. At the mention of 'C-rank' Konohamaru was promptly down on his knee begging Tsunade.

"Hokage-sama! I would be honoured to take this mission!" Konohamaru said in a very un-Konohamaru-like-manner. Naruto chuckled at his students display.

"I don't know…" Tsunade teased. "C-ranks are pretty dangerous, especially for fresh genin such as yourself…" This time it was Hanabi who stepped forward.

"Hokage-sama, with all due respect we've been doing nothing but demeaning chores for the past 2 weeks. If you would, please allow us to prove ourselves with this mission."

Surprisingly, even Takusa spoke up.

"I second what Hyuuga-san said, these 'D-ranks' are commoners chores unfit for ninja." He added in his usual calm and collected voice, although the frustrated look on his face said 'IF I HAVE TO CLEAN UP ANYMORE DOG SHIT I'M GOING TO GO INSANE!' Tsunade dropped her teasing expression and got serious.

"Very well." She said handing a folder to Naruto. "Here are the details for your mission, I expect it done within the week."

Naruto skimmed over the folder with his eyes before looking up.

"Alright everyone, pack for 5 days travel and meet me at the village gates in an hour."

"What's the mission?" Hanabi asked.

Naruto grinned.

"I'll tell you when you get to the gates." And with that he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

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Hinata was walking aimlessly down the halls of the Hyuuga compound with no specific destination in mind. Ever since the incident with the shirt a few weeks ago that Neji had so kindly told her about, she couldn't help thinking about Naruto. Sure it had been a misunderstanding and all but Hinata couldn't help but feel a little bit concerned…and jealous. She envied her younger sister for being able to be on the same team as Naruto. She had been on a few missions with him herself but they were the 'once every other 2 months' type of opportunities. Her chances to spend mission time with Naruto were practically non-existent now that he was a Sensei. She could always just borrow some courage from Kami-sama and spend time with him outside of missions…She shook her head dismissing the thought and kept walking. It was around this time that she saw the object of her jealousy strolling down the hall.

"Ano, Hanabi-chan, what're you doing home so early, I thought you had a mission." Yes, Hinata's stuttering had gone away for the most part, it only arose whenever she was nervous…which seemed to be every time she was talking to Naruto.

"Hokage-sama saw fit to give our team a C-rank mission, so I am to pack for 5days travel."

Hinata raised an eyebrow.

"But you've only just come out of the academy, surely you haven't done enough D-ranks…"

"I'm not quite sure either, but apparently Naruto asked Hokage-sama for a C-rank as a favour. If that is all, I need to pack, please inform Otou-sama I will be gone for awhile."

"H-hai."

Hinata was now more then a _little_ bit jealous of her sister. She got to spend 5 days practically alone with _HER_ Naruto-kun…and when did she start referring to him as anything other then Uzumaki-san or Sensei. She felt slightly guilty for projecting her anger towards Hanabi, but she wasn't going to let her take Naruto away from her that easily.

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When Hanabi arrived at the gates her team was in full attendance. Her Sensei was currently in the middle of checking Konohamaru's pack to see if he'd brought the needed supplies for a 5 day trip. After confirming he indeed had all the essentials he called Hanabi over and started checking her gear. She raised an eyebrow when he didn't call Takusa over to check his gear. He could've checked it before she got there, but the time that it took to check coupled with Naruto _DOUBLE_ checking everything made her doubt it. So, asking being the best way to find things out, she….asked.

"Why didn't you check Hokazu-san's pack?"

Naruto turned to face Hanabi and opened his mouth…nothing came out though and he scratched his head for an answer. It's not like he was allowed to say 'Because he's probably had ANBU training'…well he _WAS_ allowed to say that… he just wasn't sure of the consequences and if he'd like them.

"Uhh…" Naruto thought aloud.

"Because this isn't my first mission that has required packing." Takusa pitched in.

"When did you ever do other missions?" She asked suspiciously.

Takusa remained silent, she looked to Naruto but he had an unreadable face on as well. She huffed, feeling frustrated. It seemed like they were both hiding secrets from her, treating her like a little kid who was unable to handle the truth. Konohamaru noticed her slightly sour mood and came and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Don't mind Hokazu, he's just being his usual uninteresting self." He said poking a tongue at Takusa. Hanabi noticeably perked up at this and Naruto grinned at the show of comradery. (A/N: That even a word?)

"So boss, what's our mission?" Konohamaru asked.

Naruto took out the scroll and re-read it quickly before answering.

"Apparently there've been some sightings of Oto-nin moving in and out of one of Orochimaru's old hideouts. This is suspicious because Oto has been abandoned for a year, so our mission is purely scouting out this hideout and seeing what exactly is going on there. This would usually be a B-rank but we've been informed that the remnants of the Oto-nin are most likely genin level and we have strict orders to not engage. The hideout is about 2 days north of here… So, any questions?"

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They'd been walking for a good 7 hours now and Hanabi and Konohamaru were more or less starting to tire considerably. They were slightly baffled at how Takusa was able to keep pace with their sensei all this time and show no signs of fatigue; just one more secret that was being withheld from her. When she looked at Takusa, it was like he was emanating experience and power, but he had only graduated with completely average scores whilst she was rookie of the year. It struck her as odd that she wasn't stuck with the academy 'dead last' because her father had explained to her the process of making teams. Usually, the person with the worst scores was stuck with the best so to balance out the team, but in her case, she'd gotten Takusa who got around the top 50% of the graduates whilst Konohamaru came second in the title for rookie of the year…and if the rumours of Naruto were true, she couldn't have asked for a better team…but it all just seemed fishy. With a loud groan she was broken out of her thoughts.

"I can't take it anymore!" Konohamaru exclaimed before promptly collapsing to the ground.

"You guys have been going for hours non-stop and I'm barely keeping up anymore." He whined.

Naruto stopped and walked over to Konohamaru's side.

"If you were having trouble keeping up then why didn't you say something? We could've changed the pace to avoid situations like this if you had." Naruto scolded.

"Because I wanted to prove myself. I don't wanna be the one that holds the team back."

Naruto sighed.

'_Just like myself when I was his age._'

It was then that he noticed Hanabi breathing quite raggedly as well.

"Hanabi, you don't look to be doing to good yourself, why didn't you say anything?"

Hanabi looked down and didn't answer.

"Well?" He questioned.

"Hyuuga's don't complain." She muttered almost inaudibly.

Naruto let out another sigh of exasperation.

"Listen, we're a team, and teams have to communicate if they want to work. I know first hand what happens when teammates don't get along. If one person is hurting and trying to cover it up, they're not just hurting themselves but their performance will hinder the team as a whole. You have a team specifically to help you out of any trouble you might find yourself in, so don't hesitate to ask for help. I will not think any less of you if you do so." Naruto said in a moment of true wisdom. He surveyed their reactions to see if they understood, and they did, although Takusa was indifferent to the whole conversation.

"Alright, we'll set up camp here. It's looks like it'll be dark soon anyway. Seeing as you two are exhausted I'll prepare the fire and get the water but next time I expect you to pull your weight around the camp. Hokazu, you can set up the tents." Takusa gave a nod in Naruto's direction before he disappeared off into the woods in search of a stream.

Naruto soon returned to find the tents set up and a fire already going. He set down the bucket of water he brought back along with a sack and raised an eyebrow at the blaze. Takusa caught his unasked question and answered it for him.

"I finished the tents but you still weren't back, so I thought it'd be more productive if I started on the fire." He droned out monotonously.

"Yeah, thanks. It took awhile to find a stream; there wasn't one around for a good 2 miles. Where are Konohamaru and Hanabi?"

"Resting inside their tents, although I'm not sure if they're asleep."

"Go wake them, I managed to catch a few fish and I don't think they've eaten since we left, they'll need their energy if they wanna keep up with us tomorrow."

Takusa nodded and carried out his task. Consecutive moans of defiance were heard over the next minute, followed by a loud yelp from Hanabi and a 'WHY"D YOU KICK ME' from Konohamaru. Takusa soon emerged from both tents with a smirk on his face. Naruto then realised that Takusa had been in both tents at the _SAME _time. Abruptly one of the Takusa's that emerged from a tent disappeared in a puff of smoke.

'_He knows how to make Kage Bunshin?_' Naruto thought wide eyed.

Takusa then walked up to Naruto.

"I would like to perform that duty again." He stated with a smirk.

_Takusa?… Smirking?._

'_Who are you and what have you done with Takusa?' _Naruto wanted to say. Instead he settled for a slightly baffled look and asked.

"And why's that?"

"I find their reactions…satisfying." 

Naruto chuckled at this.

"Sure."

When Hanabi and Konohamaru emerged from their respective tents they were both shooting Takusa death glares. Naruto knew what happened to Konohamaru because he practically announced it, but Hanabi…. Naruto leaned in to Takusa's ear.

"What'd you do to her?" He whispered pointing at Hanabi. Takusa shrugged.

"I pinched her." He stated non-chalantly. Naruto looked to Hanabi and judging from the slight blush she was wearing he could only guess where.

"Mah, whatever. Konohamaru, start cooking the fish." Naruto said pointing to the sack on the ground.

"Hai." He grunted still glaring at Takusa.

The team ate their share of fish mostly in silence. Hanabi and Konohamaru were to tired to bother trying to make conversation, Takusa was…well Takusa and Naruto was deep in thought. He was beginning to wonder if Kabuto really did have a back up plan. For all he knew the sound had been eradicated a year ago and there shouldn't be anyone left, let alone genin. He would understand if some jonin had survived, but genin… He could hardly believe that genin could survive an eradication squad from all 5 great nations. The only thing that he could think of that made sense…was that someone was recruiting again. Eventually he came to the conclusion that he'd get more answers tomorrow and worrying would do little to help. With a sigh he conjured up a Kage bunshin to be on lookout and ordered his team to get a good nights rest.

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-_With Naruto's Kage Bunshin-_

It was nighttime, the forest illuminated by the glow of the moon. One would expect silence at night, but in truth, nighttime was when the forest came alive. For an inexperienced Shinobi, it may have been nerve wracking to keep watch. Crickets were sounding, and scampering feet could be heard on the ground, courtesy of the nocturnal predators. Yes, for any lesser Shinobi it may have indeed been…scary. But after a few watches you began to differentiate the sounds of animals from enemy attackers. If an animal brushed past a bush, it was usually loud and they did not control the noise that they made…if an enemy Shinobi attacked you, you would barely hear it, their breathing was controlled, they put as little weight onto their feet as possible, and they usually had something to dampen the sound of their footfalls. There was no use jumping at loud abrupt noises, because those were usually not Shinobi…no, it wasn't the loud noises you should jump at, but the quiet ones…the barely audible sounds, the delicate pitter patter of feet gliding over the ground, these were the noises you needed to be careful of…and with Naruto's understanding of this concept, it was exactly how he heard the Shinobi approaching.

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Naruto bolted upright in his tent. His Kage bunshin had just been dispelled and he was trying to make sense of the memories. The Shinobi was wearing an ANBU mask but he couldn't make out which village he was from due to the time of the day. He could've sworn he heard the Shinobi say 'wait' but his Bunshin attacked nonetheless and was dispelled reasonably quickly after that. The Shinobi was about 150 metres away by now he guessed.

"Shit." Naruto cursed under his breath. He made 3 Kage bunshin to wake up his team before he burst out of his tent and raced in the direction of the Shinobi. He drew a kunai from his weapons pouch and kept up his speed. He came to a clearing and the ANBU was just standing there…expecting him. The ANBU looked up at Naruto and smirked under his mask.

"The same old hot head Naruto, I tell your Kage bunshin to wait and yet it still attacks me." He spoke. Now that Naruto was close enough he could see the mask was that of sunagakure.

'_That voice…_'

"Wait a second…Kankuro?"

A/N:

Ok so maybe I lied about the length. 4.6k Words rofl, but after the review by Cenright, well read it and you'll understand why it's 4.6k and not 5k, btw ty for the review Cen.

Man up till now I've had massive writers block that's why this chap took like a week to write instead of 5 days. Next chapter….ETA 5-9days. Oh and one last thing, I hope Takusa didn't come off as a perv with the whole pinching Hanabi on the ass, but he was apprenticed under Danzo for awhile meaning he's about as clueless as Sai on what's appropriate and what's not. Also next chap I will have some more Hanabi/Naruto interaction, but this chapter was mostly plot development…or starting off the plot, whatever bleh. Till Next Time Ja Ne!

(P.S How is one supposed to address their younger sister? I was unsure when Hinata spoke to Hanabi so I just had Hinata address her as 'Hanabi-chan.')


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:**

No this Fic Has NOT been abandoned. I'll just say this, I never abandon any fics, If any thing I lose interest in them to come back and write them later lol. Anyways schools been a bitch so sorry bout long time to update. Relatively Short chap of 2.7k.

Ty for Reviews.

**InARealPickle:** Yes sorry about that, a few ppl complained bout it, so I cut it up.

**k4m3j0: ** I re-edited chapter one, that's why it got bumped.

**Bratinov: **Lol, sadly I wouldn't know about defending a little sister as I have an older brother who used to beat the crap out of me constantly Hahaha.

**Icewolves & InsanityCorrupts: **I'll get to fluff after this mission ends, there was a hint in this chap but not too much, plot before fluff soz but it'll come don't worry.

**PokemonZombie: **Don't worry, while I don't hate OC's I don't favour stories revolving around them either. As for multiple pairings, I agree with you completely that they take away from the main pairing and I have no intention to include any other pairings.

Also thank you for all the people who told me what 'imouto' I appreciate but I think I'm gonna go with Hinata calling her Hanabi-chan :). Ty for all reviews, I wasn't going to update for about 2 more weeks but then I saw all the reviews and thought I'd throw you guys a bone. Hope you enjoy.

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 5:** Alive.

"Wait a second…Kankuro?"

Naruto wouldn't have recognised him if not for his voice. Naruto had never seen the older brother of the Kazekage wear anything other then his purple face paint and cat ear pointed hood.

"Yeah, from the look on your face I guess you're wondering about this?" Kankuro said pointing to his ANBU mask. Naruto nodded and Kankuro continued with a rather smug tone.

"Well, what you're looking at is a newly appointed ANBU captain of suna."

The first thought that came to mind was to congratulate him, but then he realised something.

"Wait. If you're an ANBU captain then what're you doing _here_ in fire country."

"The same reason you're here, to investigate the sound. Suna noticed some…irregularities that abandoned bases usually don't follow…like having people in it. I was sent on a solo mission to scout and if possible eliminate any threat about a week ago. Just today a messenger hawk intercepted me telling that leaf had also dispatched a recon team and I was told to work in league with you guys."

"I see…" Naruto said thoughtfully. "So what do you think?"

"About what?" Kankuro asked.

"About what snake-teme said before he got his head cut off."

An unsettling silence descended upon the two, as they were both in deep thought.

"Eh, don't worry about it. In any case we'll find out a bit more after this missions done."

Naruto's shadow clones chose at this point to dispel themselves. His team was up and waiting at the campsite in defensive positions…well most of his team. Apparently Konohamaru was on his way here. As soon as Naruto received these memories a figure burst out of a nearby bush, shuriken in hand.

"Don't worry Sensei, I'll save you!"

Said figure promptly tripped over the long turquoise scarf it still had the tenacity to wear after so many repeats of the scene that just unfolded. Konohamaru face planted on the ground and started moaning sweet nothings. Both Naruto and Kankuro sweat dropped at this display.

"He's like a dumber version of you…" Kankuro said, feeling almost sorry that Naruto had to teach the kid. This earned him a glare from Naruto which Kankuro chuckled at.

Naruto sighed.

"Get up Konohamaru and don't attack the scary ANBU captain, he's an ally. We're going back to camp." He stated disinterestedly.

Kankuro cast one last look at the kid on the ground before falling into step with Naruto.

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_-A minute before hand-_

Hanabi was having a rather pleasant sleep until a certain blonde haired sensei burst into her tent in the middle of the night scaring the crap out of her. Not that there was any crap TO scare out of her, she had the common sense to take care of that business before going to sleep… Before she could release her wave of righteous womanly fury on him for bursting in like that, a hand was placed firmly over her mouth. Naruto made a gesture to be silent and she relented for the moment. He spoke in a quick and hushed tone.

"Possible enemy Shinobi approaching 150 metres east of here. Be ready." And with that he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Hanabi rose from her makeshift bed, fully alert and ready. She decided getting dressed out of her nightwear would be to time consuming so she grabbed her kunai pouch and stepped out into the night. Takusa had already positioned himself in a tree overlooking the tents whilst Konohamaru had disappeared into the bushes. She frowned at Konohamaru's hard headedness of going to engage an enemy without a plan but let him go. Activating her Byakugan she could see her sensei was there as well, so Konohamaru would more of less be fine…she hoped. She jumped into the tree Takusa was currently occupying and joined him on his branch. A cool breeze flowed over her body as she glided through the air and it sent a shiver up her spine. Takusa took the time to eye her over before bluntly stating;

"You're choice of clothing is not appropriate for battle situations…or any situations for that matter."

She went slightly red in the face and hissed at him.

"Shut up, I didn't have time to change."

Takusa stared blankly at her.

"Clearly."

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Shortly after a voice called out of the trees.

"Blondie incoming."

Naruto emerged from the trees and Hanabi and Takusa dropped their guard. That was the fail-safe call they had arranged before. Each member had a codename in which they would speak to avoid being suspected as an enemy. Naruto's was 'Blondie', which he grudgingly accepted after being outvoted for his nickname. Hanabi was 'Sua'; Naruto had suggested it and no one thought anything was wrong with it…what they didn't know was it was actually S.U.A, an acronym for…Takusa's was 'Indifferent', go figure right? As for Konohamaru's, well, his was…

"Idiot incoming!"

This was followed by a laughing ANBU emerging from the brush.

"Idiot incoming?" He laughed. "It suits you perfectly."

Konohamaru scowled and raised his fist threateningly at the ANBU.

"Shut up dummy, you should show more respect to the future Hokage!"

The ANBU raised an eyebrow at this.

"Looks like you've got some competition, ne Naruto?" He chuckled.

"Yeah." Naruto smirked.

At this time Hanabi and Takusa jumped down and joined the others.

"Who are you and why are you here?" Hanabi questioned the Suna ANBU.

The ANBU turned his attention to Hanabi and eyed her.

"You can call me Anbu-san, no need to go comprising my identity right? As for what I'm doing here… both our missions seem to coincide with each other so I'll be tagging along…however…"

"However what?" Hanabi asked raising an eyebrow.

"I've only been to Konoha a few times, but last time I checked they didn't allow the 'noble' Hyuuga's to practice in the art of seduction." He stated pointing to her attire. Hanabi blushed a deep red as everyones attention was suddenly focused on her.

"I-it's just SLEEPWEAR!" She yelled. Naruto had never seen her so flustered before, she wore a look of extreme displeasure, so he decided to end her torment. He could imagine she was feeling very uncomfortable at the moment.

"Alright, well everyone get some sleep, we'll be getting up in a few hours." Hanabi promptly excused herself, whilst Konohamaru, with a lingering gaze on Hanabi, dragged his tired self back to his tent. Takusa was already gone before Naruto had finished the sentence to dismiss them.

"Interesting group you got there."

"Please refrain from embarrassing my students." Naruto stated sternly. Kankuro looked at Naruto slightly confused.

"Huh? Come on Naruto, I was just joking."

Naruto remembered the pained expression Hanabi wore moments ago.

"Well don't." With that he conjured up a shadow clone to keep watch and headed back to his tent. Kankuro groaned.

"What the hell did I do?" He asked.

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Hanabi awoke feeling rather heated. Apparently her mind thought it appropriate to replay the gruelling experience of everyone staring at her over and over again…well there were some subtle differences to the version that she witnessed in her dreams…that mainly being she had no clothes on and neither did a certain sensei. She looked out of her tent and saw she probably had another hour or two before everyone got up. Seeing the state she was in she doubted she'd be able to go back to sleep so she got dressed and stepped out of her tent. Making her way over to a comfortable looking rock she sat herself down and pulled out a Ration bar from her Kunai pouch. Hanabi had never had the pleasure of trying one before as she hadn't been on any missions, so she was quite curious as to what they taste liked. Unwrapping the foil, she took a generous bite and processed the food in her mouth before freezing. To be blunt…it tasted like shit. She quickly spat out the contents of her mouth and threw the bar on the ground.

"Who the hell would eat that?" She yelled aloud. A chuckled was heard coming from behind her.

"That's what I said too."

Hanabi turned around to see Naruto smiling down at her.

"Have a good sleep?" He asked.

Hanabi blushed, she had a GREAT sleep, but she sure as hell wasn't going to tell him that. She nodded her affirmation.

"What are you doing up so early?" She asked him.

Naruto stretched his tired limbs and yawned.

"Well my Kage bunshin dispelled when it saw you getting up, so I figured I'd get up too."

Hanabi looked around the camp site and noticed there wasn't an extra tent set up.

"Where's 'Anbu-san'?"

Naruto smirked.

"Oi, 'Anbu-san', get your ass down here."

Kankuro promptly materialized out of nowhere next to Naruto.

"Geez, so loud in the morning, what do you want?"

"Everyone's gonna be up soon, and we'll be leaving in around 2 hours, be a dear and go fill up our canteens and catch us some fish would ya?" Naruto said.

Kankuro frowned under his mask.

"Hey, I didn't sign up for grunt work." He mumbled.

"Just go do it, there's a stream about 2 miles North-east of here." Naruto said handing over the canteens.

"Fine fine, but you owe me."

'Anbu-san' disappeared after that leaving a slightly confused Hanabi.

"Where does he sleep?"

Naruto gestured to a tree.

"That's doesn't seem very…comfortable." She commented.

Naruto smirked.

"Believe me, it isn't."

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-_8 Hours later-_

The group arrived in town close to the border of rice country. It was about 2 hours travel from their destination, but it was also where their informant had originated. There had been sightings of Oto-nin coming into this village to get simple necessities like water, food. Kankuro was hoping to pick up an Oto-nin and interrogate him in the town, and although Naruto's orders were 'no engagement', technically it'd be Kankuro who was doing the engaging so they tagged along. Now obviously going into a civilian town dressed as full fledged Shinobi would draw attention, so they had the sense to henge into civilians before entering the town. Naruto and Kankuro were fairly well known, even among non-ninja towns. The son of Konoha's yellow flash, apprentice of the late Toad Sage, student of the Copy nin, Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune as WELL as a Sage himself…the list went on. All of these were well known facts after his exploits in recent days and it had earned him an S-rank in many villages Bingo books. Kankuro wasn't as well known but he still had a few things going for him, such as; The son of the Yondaime Kazekage, The brother of the Godaime Kazekage, Puppeteer of Greater skill then Akasuna no Sasori and not to mention, newly instated ANBU captain…although they didn't know that last one.

They waited for awhile outside of what seemed to be the most popular general convenience store; surely if you wanted food you'd go to the most popular store. Not to disappoint 1 hour later a Oto-nin shows up. They catch the man in the act of 'purchasing' his goods, that being, him getting himself some food them punching the store clerk in the face and running away…Unfortunately that was where Kankuro intercepted the man, and with a swift chop to the back of the neck, he was out cold. Kankuro then henged the man to look like a sack of potatoes and slung him over his shoulder. The group took the man to the surrounding jungle outside the village and tied him to a tree to be interrogated.

Naruto was about to wake the man when Konohamaru stepped in and said 'allow me.'

Konohamaru had been waiting so long to try this out. With a large intake of air Konohamaru put his mouth right next to the mans ear and yelled.

"RISE AND SHINE OTO-CHAN!"

The Oto-nin's eyes snapped open, and if you looked closely, you could see a slight trickle of blood coming from his ears.

"W-where..am I?" He asked groggily.

Kankuro took a step forward and gave a powerful punch to the mans gut causing him to wheeze.

"You should be more concerned about what's going to happen to you." He said.

The mans eyes widened in fear.

"Pl-please don't kill me." He said cowering slightly.

"I need information. If I get it we might be able to arranged something."

The man nodded quickly.

"Why are you wearing an Otogakure forehead protector?"

"B-because I joined their village." He responded.

Kankuro scowled under his mask.

"Oto has been destroyed for awhile now, your lying." He said pulling out a kunai.

"W-WAIT! I'm telling the truth, I was a nuke-nin of Kusa until around a month ago. I was only a genin so my survival skill weren't the best and I needed a place to stay. When I passed through this town a man with bearing the Oto symbol noticed my scratched forehead protector and offered that I join Oto."

Kankuro lowered his Kunai, the man didn't seem to be lying.

"Do you know who has been recruiting?" He asked.

"No, he is only known as the Otokage by the majority of us."

"And how many of you are there, as well as your strength?"

"I-if I had to estimate, around 50 genin, 5 Chunin and 6 Jonin. Although the Otokage is apparently a S-ranked nuke-nin."

"S-ranked? Shit." Kankuro cursed.

"S-so can I go now?" The Oto-nin asked fearfully.

Kankuro looked at him almost disinterestedly.

"Yes…begone now." And with that Kankuro sliced the mans jugular.

The Hanabi and Konohamaru watched in shocked as the man choked on his blood and died in a rather bloody death. They both promptly ran into the bushes and emptied their stomachs. Naruto had a look of distaste on his face.

Konohamaru yelled from the bushes.

"Give some FUCKING warning before you go and kill someone infront of me."

Takusa was completely unfazed by the whole thing. Hanabi walked back to the group looking slightly pale, whilst Kankuro rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were fresh."

"S-ranked…" Naruto muttered.

"Yeah, that's what he said…it complicates things a lot. Being an ANBU I make it my business to know most S-ranked criminals in the bingo book…but I can't think of who would want to revive Oto."

"Either way, I'm sticking to the rules of no engagement. I would help you out 'Anbu-san' but I don't want to involve my genin in a large scale battle. I don't think you should engage either, if the guy was on his own you might be able to take him and I stress the 'might' part. But with 50 genin, 5 chunin and 6 jonin, it sounds nothing short of suicide."

"Dam, I suppose you're right. I'll have to call for backup. Pity though, about your 'no engagement' crap, you coulda probably taken all of them on your own."

Naruto's students looked at him curiously.

"Yeah probably, but not this time. In any case lets go scout out this base of theirs, we might be able to find something of use."

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Things never go the way you expect when you have someone like Kankuro leading the way. The supposed 'scouting' eventually turned to 'scouting' INSIDE of their base. The only reason Naruto followed was because in all technicality they were 'scouting' and they hadn't found enough information to be satisfied. They had only run into 1 genin since the infiltration and Kankuro had taken care of it to keep Naruto's group true to their 'no engagement' rule. They kept to the shadows weaving in and out of rooms. Naruto was rather impressed with his genin teams apparent skill at stealth. They had successfully avoided 5 ninja so far. Something felt off however, the base was relatively small, and to run into only 5 ninja when there was supposed to be at least 60 seemed odd. They continued to scour the base until they heard a lot of noise coming from the end of the corridor. Getting closer to the room they saw a large gathering of Shinobi and a podium with someone standing up addressing them. When the face of the man on the podium came into view, Naruto's mouth hung open. He could only think one thing.

'_What kind of sick fucking joke is this?_'

A/N:

Hope you enjoyed, I neglected homework to up this lol. Updates will never be set in stone as I'm back in school now, but know that I'll never go a month without updating unless stated otherwise.

Ty for all the reviews. If you're interested, stats for this story are; 47 reviews, 5482 hits, 72 favs,111 alerts.

Till next time, oh and check out this if u like amvs watch?v=k4eRau1Gp88 I make em.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:**

So it's been like 8 months since I last updated, got a little lost on this chapter writing/ re-writing the first half of this chap. Finally I thought, I can't improve on the first 2k of it, so just skip it, accept it and move on. Which is what I did otherwise I probably would've given up on this story. I suggest re-reading the story for those who cannot remember what this story is about. Added some light humour and lots of normal interaction with Hanabi in this chap, hope you enjoy.

**Last chapter re-cap:**

Getting closer to the room they saw a large gathering of Shinobi and a podium with someone standing up addressing them. When the face of the man on the podium came into view, Naruto's mouth hung open. He could only think one thing.

'_What kind of sick fucking joke is this?_'

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 6:** He's back.

_Kabuto looked wide eyed at the vile._

"_But, Orochimaru-sama, this is…"_

"_Yes, and as such, I'd like you to go ahead with things according to plan."_

_The right hand man looked up to his master in confusion._

"_Surely this is unneeded, your strength alone is on the level of which most ninja dream of." Kabuto persuaded. Orochimaru seemed pleased by this and allowed himself a momentary smirk before an evident frown formed._

"_Whilst this is true Kabuto-kun, there are still many out there who are stronger than me, namely those in that **Akatsuki**," He spat, " there is a line between confidence and arrogance, and I am not foolish enough to think my demise inevitable in the coming years."_

"_I see." Kabuto nodded his understanding._

"_In any case, do what you will with that, I expect great things, Kabuto-kun."_

_Kabuto bowed low._

"_Hai, Orochimaru-sama."_

~Present~

"Orochimaru," Kankuro whispered nervously.

"How is this possible…?"

"Hanabi." Naruto snapped. "Use your Byakugan and tell me if this is some kind of genjutsu."

Said Hyuuga was slightly startled by her usually cheery sensei's tone but obliged. After a few seconds of straining her eyes she came to a conclusion.

"There seems to be no type of genjutsu in the surrounding area."

"You're sure?" Naruto asked.

"Hai."

Naruto's response was a growl.

"This has to be some kind of trick." He said.

Suddenly the air shifted behind the group, and an all too familiar voice filled the air.

"So it seems you 5 are the reason 2 of my men are unaccounted for…Ku ku ku, it has been a while, Naruto-kun."

Naruto spun around, Kunai already in hand and threw it at Orochimaru, only for him to evade.

"That's not a very nice greeting, Naruto-kun." He teased.

"Don't screw around with me, how the hell are you alive!" Naruto demanded releasing killing intent. This got the attention of the 60 or so ninja who were wondering where their leader had disappeared too. They made to take care of the intruders but Orochimaru signalled for them to stand down.

"I am immortal Naruto-kun, as is everybody, but the body decays, and when ones body dies, its soul moves on. But my soul was never meant for the eternally damned, and that is why I am here today." He spoke in riddles.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Naruto snarled.

"I'd like to see how strong you've become, Naruto-kun," Orochimaru said, completely ignoring Naruto's question "if what Kabuto said serves true, you have become quite the ninja." Naruto's eyes widened

"K-Kabuto's alive too?"

Orochimaru sighed.

"Kabuto…he served me well. In the end he was always just one of my pawns… but who would think that a pawn would ever attain strength equal to, if not greater than his masters. His usefulness had passed the moment he became a liability, so… he became apart of me…or rather I him." He stated with a smirk.

Takusa was in deep thought over the conversation.

'_He says he became apart of Kabuto, but Kabuto has been supposedly deceased for 2 years. If what he says is true then Kabuto would've had to be alive for this to happen… but then again so would Orochimaru…the only thing I can think of is that someone has perfected a jutsu that brings the dead back to life, but that's impossible so it has to be something else…'_

His thoughts were broken by Orochimaru's voice.

"Men, take care of them, but leave Naruto-kun for me."

"Everyone stay close to me!" Naruto barked whilst putting his hands into the crossed tiger seal.

"What about the no engagement order Uzumaki-sensei?" Takusa questioned.

"I don't really think they're gonna make keeping to that order easy Hokazu."

"I see." Takusa said whilst forming his own crossed tiger seal.

"Get ready Konohamaru."

At that moment the 3 Konoha Shinobi spoke in unison.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

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Orochimaru had stayed back as the 3 used the same Jutsu. As the smoke cleared Orochimaru couldn't help but let a sinister grin cross his face. Standing in front of him was a sea of Kage bunshin. He decided the smartest thing to do would be to let his men disperse the majority of the bunshins before entering the fray himself. What surprised him was the sheer number of clones. He estimated that Naruto had created around 100, the Sandaime's grandson about 50 and the other boy about 20. The sheer concentration of chakra in each of Naruto's bunshins was amazing, if he had to guess the boy had expanded his vast reserves considerably since their last meeting. Whilst the sandaime's grandson was nothing special and his clones were easily dispersed, the other boy's bunshins showed skill comparable to at least low level Chunin and therefore lasted far longer. In short it was a massacre, the bunshins wiping out all except for 2 Jonin. It was slightly disappointing, he had spent a good month recruiting those ninja, but they were nothing special…besides, he still had _that_.

Kankuro who had done nothing during the fray thought it appropriate to start up some trash talk.

"That was quick, not so smug now are you snake-teme."

Orochimaru was slightly irked at the comment but kept his cool.

"It was expected, but unless you'd like to die I suggest you leave so I can 'test' out our dear Naruto-kun." He replied licking his lips.

Orochimaru's question was answered with a snort.

"Yeah right, I didn't come all the way from Suna just to _watch_ you die."

Orochimaru chuckled before releasing a massive amount of killing intent; effectively freezing the 2 inexperienced genin and even making Takusa and Kankuro sweat a little.

"Know your place, _**boy**_." He retorted.

"Anbu-san, take my team and get out of here." Naruto said.

The Suna ANBU captain gave an unbelieving look behind his mask.

"You really don't think I'm gonna leave you alone to fight this bastard AND 2 Jonin do you?"

Before Naruto could answer however, Orochimaru cut in.

"Of course not, _Anbu-san_, although I may want Naruto-kun to myself, don't assume that I'm going to let the rest of you live." He stated with a crooked smirk. "Jonin, keep them busy until I'm done with Naruto-kun."

One of the sound Jonin abruptly flashed in front of the Kankuro and the Konoha genin hands already flashing through seals.

"Doton: Doryudan no Jutsu!" He exclaimed.

Caught off guard, all 4 shinobi were blasted by the jutsu straight down the hallway from which they came. The Oto-nin then signalled for his fellow Jonin, and the 2 were off in pursuit of the 4 intruders leaving Naruto and Orochimaru alone.

"I'm surprised by your restraint." Orochimaru said offhandedly. "If I remember correctly, during our last encounter you were quite eager to tear my face off. But I suppose without dear Sasuke-kun involved you really couldn't care less."

"Shut the hell up. I don't need extra motivation to know the type of person you are."

Orochimaru sighed.

"So, even with Sasuke out of the picture, you wouldn't consider joining me would you?"

Naruto's eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he heard that, it wasn't until he saw the smirk on Orochimaru's face that he realised he was toying with him.

"Bastard." Naruto growled as a yellow energy enveloped him.

Orochimaru's eye brow raised.  
"Interesting indeed, Naruto-kun."

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Kankuro, Takusa, Konohamaru and Hanabi all hid in a tree near the entrance to the hideout. When they were blown down the hallway, Takusa reasoned it would be easier fighting outside rather then a narrow hallway, so the group had made their way outside. They had been waiting for more than a minute for the Oto-nin to appear only to end up waiting longer. Either these ninja were incredibly slow or they didn't know how to follow a basic trail.

"What the hell's taking em' so long." Konohamaru muttered, voicing Hanabi's thoughts to the letter. Something was DEFINITELY wrong. With a quick seal and a whisper of 'byakugan' Hanabi's doujutsu style Kekkei genkai flared to life. Her eyes narrowed as she saw 2 previously hidden sources of Chakra making their way towards the group under what looked like some sort of Doton cloaking jutsu… and they were closing in. Hanabi quickly pulled a kunai with an explosive tag attached and threw it deftly in the enemies' direction. The 2 jonin quickly left their camouflages and leapt high into the air to avoid the explosion, whilst taking note of their attackers position. During descent, they noticed a little bit too late that the Anbu captain was missing.

From behind them, Kankuro with his Sasori puppet launched a stream of fire at the shinobi. Rather then get fried one of them opted to fight fire with fire.

"Katon: Goukakyu no jutsu!"

The large fireball broke through the stream coming from Kankuro's puppet forcing him to move out of the way. As the Oto-nin touched down on the ground they noticed the Hyuuga girl waiting for them. Both charged her from opposite sides not taking note of the smirk the girl was wearing.

"Kaiten!"

Both shinobi were sent flying in opposite directions, only to be stopped mid flight. A cry of 'Rasengan!' was heard as one nin was slammed into the ground with his intestines being ground out. The other had a downward momentum charged drop kick to the face by Takusa. Needless to say Kankuro was certainly impressed by the quick disposal of apparent jonin level nin by a genin team, even if he had provided a distraction for them to get into position.

"Well…that was easy."

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All that he saw was a flash of yellow before he felt his face impacted by an immense force and his body flying through the air. His flight was promptly ended as his body was slammed into the wall of the meeting hall. Instead of groaning and being rendered unconscious like most _normal_ people would, Orochimaru simply chuckled and stood back up, completely unfazed from the attack.

"Here I come, Naruto-kun." Naruto grimaced at that slightly, he wasn't sure if that was an intended pun or not, because from the look of pure excitement and glee on the snake mans face, he could very well be…coming.

Biting both of his thumbs he slammed his hands on the ground where countless seals scrawled themselves.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu." Orochimaru spoke.

A sea of snakes appeared from nothingness and surged towards Naruto. The boy stood his ground unamused before going through the appropriate hand signs and calling out his technique.

"Futon: Daitoppa." A literal hurricane of a wind tore its way through the snakes causing them to disappear in a puff of smoke. Orochimaru jumped out of the way of the attack only for Naruto to appear in front of him in a blinding light and land a 3 hit combo on the man. Each blow carried an extreme amount of impact behind it, and if it weren't for Orochimaru sticking himself to the floor with chakra, he was quite sure he would've been sent flying across the room a second time. They engaged in an exchange of Taijutsu, although for Orochimaru it was like fighting someone with Tsunade's strength AND the speed to back it up. Blocking attacks was futile as his bones were easily shattered under the brute strength of the blonde jonin, all he could do was dodge, and even that didn't leave him completely unscathed. It was clear he was being dominated in every aspect of the battle. A roundhouse kick to his head further enforced this as he was sent sprawling to the ground in a heap and lay there.

Naruto started walking towards the body to finish him off when it started convulsing violently. Unsurprisingly, out of the mouth of the body came another Orochimaru, appearing completely uninjured, if not a little tired and covered in some slime like substance.

"I see." He breathed out quite raggedly. "You have indeed grown strong, Naruto-kun. I look forward to when I am not on the receiving end of that power and rather basking in awe of it." He commented.

"Like hell that'll ever happen teme." Naruto scoffed.

"Non-believers are always the hardest to convince, wouldn't you agree?" Orochimaru asked rhetorically. " Nonetheless, despite what they say, what is destined to happen _will_ happen." The snake sannin started melting into the ground.

"You are the child of prophecy after all aren't you? You should know how destiny works."

Naruto raced over to pull Orochimaru out of the ground to prevent his escape. What surprised him however was when he grabbed him, he dissolved into mud.

"_Until then Naruto-kun._"

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It had been 6 days since the mission with Orochimaru. To say the leaf was in uproar about his continued existence would be a very bold understatement. It seemed that whenever Naruto and C-ranked missions were involved, mission ranking tended to not be a very reliable source for its difficulty. Still, the mission had been carried out to completion, even if one or two orders had been ignored. Kankuro had split ways with the team near Konoha, saying that Gaara needed to hear about this ASAP, refusing to take a quick break in the leaf. Tsunade had given the team 2 weeks leave, she wasn't quite sure Naruto's mind would be in the right place if she sent him out on missions. The team had been debriefed and Naruto had hazily dismissed them, telling them they had a week off before regular training would begin again.

Naruto was sitting in front of the KIA monument telling Sasuke of his mission. He was hoping he could get some insight into how the Uchiha would feel about Orochimaru's apparent resurrection, though big rocks tend to have a hard time replying. He imagined he would have said something like 'that hebi-teme isn't even worth my time'. Rising to his feet he started walking off for some lunch, as much as he enjoyed his visits to the monument he enjoyed his visits to Ichiraku even more. He ate his ramen in silence, his mind focused on his previous mission. He'd let him get away. He was right there and he let him get away. But how, its not like Orochimaru was stronger then him, its not like he was faster then him. It was a small blow to his pride, and that man was one of few Naruto truly wished dead…well, he wished that he'd STAYED dead. He needed someone to vent to. Shikamaru was out of the village on a mission with his squad…so that left Neji. Neji was generally an easy enough to find guy.

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"…And in the end he got away, it's really distressing ya know?"

"And I'm guessing you came to me to let off some of the stress?" The Hyuuga asked.

Naruto scratched his head nervously.

"Well yeah, it was sort of bugging me, and since Shikamaru's out of the village and all…oh, I probably shouldn't have said that." Neji sent him an amused glare.

"Whilst I am flattered that I am second to Shikamaru," He started sarcastically, "I know that you won't be simply satisfied with a 'talk', so lets just cut the nonsense and go straight to the spar shall we?"

The blonde smiled in response.

"You read my mind Neji." The Hyuuga smirked before activating his byakugan.

"No, not mind reading, I can just see right through you."

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Hanabi had just finished her daily sparring session with her father when Neji and her sensei arrived on the grounds. Upon spotting her he gave a bright smile and waved.

"Yo, Hanabi." She raised a brow.

"Naruto? What are you doing here?"

"Just came over to have a chat with Neji and spar." He answered.

"If it wouldn't be too much to ask, would you mind us using the sparring grounds now Hanabi-sama, Hiashi-sama?" Neji asked.

"Yes that is fine, Hanabi and I had just finished our session." Hiashi spoke, "I believe team training starts up again tomorrow does it not, Naruto-san?" Naruto supplied his question with a blank look.

"Huh? Oh right, team training, yeah, I totally forg…" The head Hyuuga sent him a disapproving glare, "Totally remembered! That's right." He laughed nervously. Hiashi lessened his glare and snorted before walking off.

"I'm _sure_." He said sarcastically.

Naruto sighed in relief.

"Phew, that was close."

Hanabi was now sending the blonde an annoyed glare of her own.

"So you're saying that we would've shown up tomorrow only for you to not have?"

Naruto took on a mock hurt look.

"Oh come on Hanabi-chan, you know I wouldn't have forgotten."

Her face lightened slightly at the use of 'chan' though she knew it was just him trying to get on her good side.

"I'm _sure_." She said, mimicking her father.

Naruto laughed it off before turning to Neji.

"Well I guess we better get started then eh, Neji?"

The Hyuuga in question took up a stance before speaking.

"Yes, but the usual rules, no sage mode, no Biju control mode and certainly no Ninjutsu."

"That's not fair," He pouted, "You know I like to give it my all."

"Maybe it isn't, but it is reasonable. I'd rather not die thank you, after all, this is only a _spar_." He emphasised the word.

The blonde smiled.

"Yeah, I know. My Taijutsu needs improvement anyways."

"Then come."

It confused her. Neji was the strongest in the Hyuuga clan, even besting her father's abilities by quite a large margin, but yet he was afraid of fighting Naruto at his max. Surely the power difference between the strongest Hyuuga and her sensei wasn't that large. She hadn't exactly gotten the chance to see Naruto in action, Orochimaru having already escaped on their mission before she got to see Naruto doing battle with him. In truth, she also hadn't seen much of Neji in action either. She wasn't going to miss out this time. Hanabi watched with rapt attention as Neji and Naruto went at it. The display that they put on awed her, even though it was clear Neji had the upper hand, Naruto was a very persistent fighter. He was fairly quick on his feet, dodging most Jyuuken strikes, and even shrugging off the ones that did hit home. After about an hour, they called it quits.

"That was impressive Naruto, if anything you've improved immensely since our last spar."

Naruto let out a breath, gathering himself.

"Thanks, I try, but it is definitely hard work keeping pace with you, so what do you think my read out is?"

Neji scratched his chin in thought.

"Hmmm, from your battle tactics and impressive speed and reaction time, I'd place you at solid mid jonin level Taijutsu."

"Mid jonin huh, well I suppose that is slightly better then my last read out of Tokubetsu jonin." Neji gave a nod before smirking.

"Yes it is a slight better, though you've still got a long way before you are at the elite jonin level like myself."

Naruto's imminent retort was cut off as a servant interrupted.

"Hiashi-sama thought that you two might enjoy a bit of lunch, I also have some here for you, Hanabi-sama."

"Yeah, thanks." Naruto gave a nod of appreciation.

The servant set down the tray of onigiri before bowing and leaving. The 3 gathered around the platter and started eating. Naruto for once took his time eating; listening intently to Neji as he critiqued his fighting and offered advice.

"Although I think eventually you will have to find another sparring partner, not that I don't enjoy our spars, but it is also becoming evident that you are becoming too used to my style of fighting, making it an easier task. I would suggest someone like Lee or Gai-sensei. As much as I don't like to admit it, Lee has long since surpassed me in Taijutsu."

Naruto thought this over.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, I have been able to predict a lot of your moves, and I know your tendency to try disable the left leg first. Though I think I'd like to continue our spars for awhile yet… not that I'm not eager to take my Taijutsu to the next level," He reassured, "but I'm pretty sure that if I fought Lee or Gai as I am right now, they'd beat me into the ground." Neji nodded his understanding.

"That's fine, I was thinking something along the same lines…though, to be fair, if it were me up against one of them, the results wouldn't much differ then any attempt of your own."

"Finally admitting your short comings?" Naruto teased.

"Short comings? Hardly," The Hyuuga scoffed "Gai and Lee are just Taijutsu beasts."

It was a slight wake up call listening to the older ninja talk. Hanabi had always been taught of the Hyuuga clans greatness and how strong they were. Proud, she was taught to be proud of her upbringing and bless her fortune of being born into such prestige. Listening to Naruto and Neji, the so called best Hyuuga, openly admit to not one but multiple people being better then him, it really opened her eyes to see that the Hyuuga weren't as great as she thought they were. Although there was also the possibility that they _were_ as great as she had been taught…there were just several ninja who were far greater. Hanabi finished chewing her food before opening her mouth to speak.

"Before your match," She spoke, gaining the two males attention "you placed certain restrictions on Naruto not being able to go into 'modes', what exactly were you talking about?" Neji sent Naruto a sideward glance, to which he eventually just shrugged.

"I suppose I don't mind telling her. After all, it's not exactly a secret, and she _is_ on my team." Naruto stood up from his seated position before addressing the young Hyuuga.

"So Hanabi, do you know what a Jinchuriki is?"

"Yes, and from your mentioning it I'm guessing that you're one." She stated blandly. Naruto looked slightly disappointed.

"What's with that reaction, I was expecting you to at least be scared of me." He complained. This earned him a scowl.

"The way you say that almost makes me think you'd expect such pathetic behaviour from me." Naruto just smirked it off and left her latter statement unanswered.

"You're correct, I am the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi, as such I get a few…'perks', one of them being to harness the Kyuubi's power into…well I guess it'd just be best if I showed you." A yellow energy started building around the Jinchuriki before enveloping him completely where strange designs started scrawling themselves over his body. Both Hyuuga's watched wide eyed as the transformation took place and quickly activated their byakugan's measuring the blondes chakra output. It was immense. It only lasted a second longer before it receded into the teens abdomen. He huffed before sitting back down.

"Truthfully I shouldn't be using that form as freely as I have been, I've been told it does quite the job of cutting away years of my life at a time." Hanabi gathered herself after the display.

"So what exactly does it do besides granting you a seemingly infinite amount of chakra?"

"What, infinite chakra isn't enough for you? Well, _besides_ that, I gain a lot of versatility in using the rasengan, though I won't go too far into that. The main purpose is an extreme boost in physical speed and power. I am not exaggerating when I say, in that form I am the fastest shinobi alive."

"Fastest shinobi alive?" She asked dumbfounded. "But if that's true why are you bothering to improve on your Taijutsu?" Naruto frowned at her.

"Hello? Weren't you listening? Something about using that mode shaves years off my life at a time? Ring any bells?" A look of understanding crossed the Hyuuga girls face.

"Oh, right."

"I tend to only use it when I am facing exceptionally strong ninja or if I have to get a job done in a hurry. Sadly I've been using it even more frequently than sage mode when it should be the other way around." A look of confusion crossed Hanabi's face.

"What's sage mode?"

"It basically does the same of what my biju control does. It focuses more on physical power output and only a slight boost in speed, though the nature chakra that comes with it can be used in a variety of ways." He explained.

"Nature chakra?" She questioned, still slightly confused.

"Ugh, it'd be easier showing you, but I'd rather not sit still for 10 minutes just to show you, maybe some other time I'll invite you to one of my training sessions to help answer your questions." Hanabi accepted this answer.

"I look forward to taking you up on that offer." With a downward glance Naruto noticed that there was one onigiri left on the platter. With a point of his finger and a quick look at both Hyuuga, he asked.

"Anybody gonna eat that?"

**A/N:**

Well that's it for now, hopefully it won't be this long before I decide to update again, but no promises, shit happens, writers block, losing files etc, that's life. Actually the thing that inspired me was the reviews that this story kept getting even though it was dead, so thank the most recent 5 reviewers for that.

Donovan123456789: No promises but out of all my stories this is the most likely to be completed.

S(Anon): Never really thought about making her a genius.

**Owlbear: I'm insulted, English is my first language, though I do tend to leave many grammatical errors in my work as I can't be bothered proof reading my work… I actually re-read chapter 5 of this story and found it littered with so many errors I grimaced, so I guess it's a moot point. I won't be getting a beta reader, too much messing around for me. **

**Carlitos1025: Hopefully this chapter explained what happened to the fox. Yes he's sealed, if the re-iteration was needed.**

**Ashleythetiger: No I hate cliff hangers, but my mind somehow deems them acceptable and writes them. I suppose that makes me a hypocritical asshole.**

**And on a closing note, , if you screw up my bolding and italics again, I'm gonna punch you in the face. If that's possible. I hope it is.**

**Mt~**


	7. Chapter 7

**To Share My Pain:**

**Chapter 7:** Cereal

"How about you fight seriously for once sensei?"

"How about _you_ fight seriously for once Hokazu." The blonde retorted as he dodged a slow axe kick. The genin pulled his leg back into place before continuing his mundane paced assault.

"I am fighting seriously." He spoke monotonously. Naruto smirked before delivering a jab which was easily blocked.

"No, but you are lying." The blonde stated.

"Well how about you fight seriously, then I'll respond in kind." The brown haired boy negotiated. Naruto dropped to the ground, kicking his leg out in an attempt to sweep the genins feet, only for him to somersault over it with ease.

"Hmmm," Naruto faked considering the idea, "I've got a better idea, how about _you_ fight seriously, then _afterwards_, I'll fight seriously." Takusa seethed at this, it was the same routine they went through every time they sparred during team training. With a huff he folded his arms across his chest and stalked off to sit down by a tree. Naruto was slightly confused by this behaviour.

"Uhh, Hokazu? What are you doing?"

Takusa glared at him in response.

"Sparring you is pointless if it yields no results, how I am supposed to improve if you aren't taking me seriously?" This caused the blonde to raise an eyebrow.

"Well that's sorta hypocritical of you don't you think? You're doing the exact same thing to me." The brown haired boy ignored him and opted to look at the sky. Naruto sighed.

"Listen Takusa," This caught his attention, he'd never referred to him by first name before, "Do you know why I take you all the way out here to spar instead in front of the rest of the team?"

"Yes, so you can show your abilities and keep them away from prying eyes, however I don't see the point of this precaution if you don't show any abilities in the first place."

"No, that's wrong," He spoke, causing Takusa to raise a brow "I do it so _you_ can show your abilities and keep them away from prying eyes. I don't know what kind of mission you were assigned by being instated in my team, but I honestly don't care that much about keeping my abilities private." This caused the boys eye's to widen in realisation, before he schooled his features.

"So if I fight you seriously, you really will respond in kind?" He asked hopefully.

"Takusa, I am a ninja through and through, but the one thing I've never really been good at is deception. You have my word that if you fight me seriously, I will fight you seriously as well." Takusa gave a nod before standing and regaining his stance. Outwardly, he was calm and focused, inwardly however…he was excited. Finally an actual challenge, he almost felt giddy at the prospect. He frowned. These feelings again…he'd have to file them away for later review. Steeling his mind, he channelled large amounts of chakra to his feet. He'd enjoy this. With a burst of chakra he was sent flying at his sensei. A real fight.

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He always did this. Whenever they showed up for team training, for the first half he'd pair her up with Konohamaru and then ditch them both to play favourites with Hokazu. The thing that irked her the most however, was that by the end of the 2 hours sparring, they'd come back fresh as daisies looking like they'd been sitting around doing nothing, whilst she'd worked her butt off. Not that Konohamaru presented too much of a challenge in Taijutsu, but 2 hours constant sparring, especially for someone with small reserves like herself, was very taxing. She actually toyed with the idea of going over there to find out just exactly what they were up to, though Konohamaru seemed to keep just enough of her attention to not allow her full thinking capabilities. It also annoyed her that her sensei seemed to know the range of the byakugan and always practiced just outside of its range.

The brown haired boy currently holding half her attention seemed to be moving his lips, like he was asking her something. As Hanabi pulled her arm back for a palm thrust, Konohamaru threw his arms up in defence.

"Woah, slow down Hanabi, I said do you want to take a break?" The Hyuuga seemed to process his words slowly before giving a curt nod as her affirmation. The Sarutobi boy promptly collapsed to the ground with a huff.

"Man I'm beat." He exhaled before turning his head to glance at Hanabi, "You look like you worked up a sweat too." He pointed out. Hanabi snapped out of her thoughts as she looked down to see the state she was in and wrinkled her nose. She was perspiring heavily from most areas of her body.

"Yes," She agreed, "though hopefully sensei will allow us to continue growing our reserves through water walking so we can clean ourselves."

"Ahhhh," Konohamaru sighed dreamily, "a nice dip in the water, that's what I need…and ramen…lots and lots of ramen…" Hanabi chose at this time to tune him out as he started rambling nonsensical garbage. She was busy standing in her currently sweaty and uncomfortable state when her sensei and other teammate decided to show up. She was actually bewildered by their appearances. It seemed their spar was…intense, to say the least. Both had ripped outfits, cuts and scrapes covering them and lots of dirt.

"What happened to you two?" She asked curiously. Naruto gave a small smile before patting the brown haired boy to his right on the shoulder.

"Let's just say me and Takusa came to an understanding."

She didn't pry any deeper, in truth she was too tired to care.

"Would it be acceptable if we were allowed a break to relax in the stream? I am rather…uncomfortable in my current sweat ridden state." She asked. Naruto nodded.

"Sure, we actually still have 20 minutes left for sparring time, but Takusa sensed that you two had stopped fighting so we decided to head over since we were done. We'll be doing water walking afterwards anyways so it works out nicely, I could use a dip." Naruto noticed at this point that Konohamaru was laying on the ground talking to himself. With a shrug he picked the boy up and hoisted him over his shoulder before he and the rest of the team made their way over to the stream.

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"RISE AND SHINE KONO-CHAN!" Konohamaru opened his eyes wincing at the volume. A second later he realised he was flying. Why was he flying? Soaring would be more accurate, and fast. A fraction of a strangled scream managed to escape his throat before he found himself submerged in water. Now he was drowning. WHY THE HELL WAS HE DROWING? With all of his might he swung his limbs in a motion that rocketed him towards the surface of the body of water. Naruto watched from above the waters surface where he had thrown the boy. Maybe he should've woken him the normal way instead he mused. A splash brought itself into existence, as Konohamaru took deep heaving breaths of air into his lungs. As if already forgetting the burning in his lungs he turned towards his sensei with an accusatory glare before pointing his finger at him.

"DAMN YOU NARUTO, I COULDA DROWNED YOU KNOW!"

Naruto chuckled.

"Yeah, I know."

The rest of the team shared his amusement as Konohamaru dragged himself out of the water.

"Anyway," He coughed to gather their attention, "We'll meet back here in a week. It's likely that we'll be getting some D-ranks as soon as our break is over, though I'm sure Tsunade will throw us the occasional C-rank so don't worry too much. Other then that I'll probably be instating a new training regiment soon, I want to see how far you guys progress within the next 5 months and hopefully you'll be ready for the Chunin exams by then." Konohamaru looked confused and excited.

"Wait we're leaving now, what about the second half of training?"

"You slept through it." Takusa supplied.

"Yeah, I didn't wanna wake you, you seemed pretty tired." Naruto said.

"Oh."

"Alright well everyone rest up and enjoy the rest of the break." With his dismissal the three genin started walking off in different directions, only for Naruto to start following one. Hanabi turned around with a questioning look on her face.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Don't worry, I'm not stalking you if that's what you were thinking." He reassured.

She rolled her eyes. He had his moments, but every now and then he'd have one of _these_ moments that would remind her how he really was.

"Obviously, you idiot, why are you walking in this direction?"

"Actually, I have to speak to your father about something." He answered.

"Oh, I see." With that she started off at a leisurely pace walking back to the Hyuuga compound with Naruto in tow. She took her time to enjoy the slow walk, a nice change of pace from her rather intensive training. About every minute though, she would hear an exasperated groan come from behind her. She of course knew who was making the ridiculous noises but chose to ignore them. It was only until they increased in frequency that she snapped and turned around to address her sensei.

"What are you groaning about?" She yelled.

Naruto had a bored and slightly upset look on his face.

"You walk sooooo slow." He complained dramatically. The Hyuuga girl actually face palmed at his childish behaviour before removing the offending limb from her face and speaking.

"Well then walk ahead of me." She hissed.

"But I don't wanna." He replied childishly.

Her eye twitched at this.

"Well then don't complain." She growled before turning her head back in front of her and continuing her walk. About 30 seconds after this the groaning resumed. Why was he doing this, was he trying to annoy her? A groan answered her question. Yes, yes he was.

Just when she felt herself about to snap again he spoke.

"I've got it!"

She turned to face him once more, annoyance clearly written on her face.

"Got what?"

"I could just carry you, that way we can go faster."

The annoyance quickly replaced itself with a red of embarrassment and anger.

"Like hell I'm letting you carry me!" She barked.

"Huh?" Naruto said confused, "You didn't mind last time." He pouted.

"T-that was different!" She stuttered, "I was tired."

"And you're not tired now?" He asked blank faced with a knowing tone.

He didn't even wait for her reply before reaching into his pouch and throwing a Kunai high up into the air in the direction they were headed. It covered a good mile in about 5 seconds and still seemed to be going strong.

"Uhm, why'd you do that?" Hanabi asked.

Naruto seemed to be counting down to himself for whatever reason.

"Two…one…because of this." He answered placing his hand on her shoulder. Before her mind could even processing what was happening a yellow light enveloped her. She and her sensei reappeared 20 metres in the air above the Hyuuga compound. Not even being able to comprehend what was happening she grabbed the closest thing to her and held on for dear life whilst screaming her lungs out. A cry of 'Futon: Daitoppa' instantly seemed to slow their descent as her sensei aimed it directly at the ground below them. Only when she heard Naruto speak did she realise they had landed already.

"You've got quite the grip there Hanabi, and you scream pretty loud too." He chuckled, unaware of what else that could have been insinuating. Hanabi turned bright red before punching Naruto her hardest in the gut causing him to double over wheezing.

"Shut up!" Without another word she stormed off.

"What the hell…" Naruto groaned.

"That's one way to put it." He heard. Lifting his head up, Naruto realised he had landed in the outside sparring area. A hand was suddenly in his face which he accepted to help himself up. The hand belonged to Neji.

"Quite an entrance Naruto-san, though I have no doubt, highly unnecessary." Naruto glanced behind himself to see the head of the Hyuuga clan.

"Kind of, she was walking slow and all so I thought I'd speed things up." He replied whilst rubbing his sore stomach. He didn't care what people said, punches from 13 year old little girls hurt.

"Walking slowly…" He mused. "And what exactly brings you here?"

Naruto's expression grew serious.

"I wanted to have a talk with you in regards to Hanabi's training." Hiashi eyed Naruto curiously before gesturing to Neji.

"You may leave."

Neji gave a small bow before vacating the premises.

"Continue then." Hiashi spoke.

"Alright, from the very beginning, in my team I saw a lot of potential. Each member is skilled beyond the level of your average genin, as such; from about day 1 I had been considering putting them up for the Chunin exams in 5 months." Hiashi nodded in approval.

"Yes, I believe putting them up for the Chunin exams would be…"

"That was my first impression," Naruto cut in, "our recent mission however made me realise that they may not be ready. Hanabi and Konohamaru lack in basic survival training, they don't know how to live off the environment and they certainly don't know how to pace themselves. Though I'm more worried about Hanabi, unlike Konohamaru she doesn't have high chakra reserves, this will make her an easier target if the exams drag on and likely to tire fast."

"So what do you propose?" Hiashi questioned.

"Well I was hoping that I could train her one on one during team training instead of the whole team…and possibly some extra time." He answered.

"5 months of team training time and extra? I highly doubt the girl is that incompetent." Hiashi stated flatly.

"Apart from survival training I was also considering drilling some long range tactics into her, simple kunai throwing and maybe a genjutsu and Ninjutsu or two." Naruto replied. Hiashi thought on this before asking his next question.

"What of your other genin? You're not thinking of neglecting them are you?"

"No, no, of course not." Naruto reassured. "I was actually thinking that whilst I train Hanabi, Takusa could train Konohamaru." This gained a snort from Hiashi.

"I doubt either boy will be thrilled with the arrangement." The blonde hummed in thought.

"Yeah, I didn't exactly think about that, but I'm sure I can easily bargain with them."

"Well it seems you've got it all figured out. I assent to your wishes, after all, I want her ready for the Chunin exams." Naruto gave a grateful smile.

"Thanks." The blonde said.

"I suppose my thanks to you is not needed," Hiashi stated, "after all, you are her sensei, it is your job to train her."

"I guess so." Naruto laughed.

"I will have a room made ready for you." Hiashi said before walking off, only to be stopped by Naruto.

"Huh? A room? What for?" The blonde asked confused.

"I don't expect you to stay every night, but it would be more convenient to have a bed ready here, especially if you are tired after sparring." Naruto gave a somewhat arrogant smirk.

"I doubt Hanabi could tire me in a spar."

"I was referring to your tendency to spar my nephew." Naruto had an understanding look.

"Ohhh, forward thinking, I like it."

"Hn." Hiashi grunted and exited the sparring area.

'_I suppose I'll have to tell the team now, maybe over some lunch…ramen perhaps? No, I don't know where Takusa lives…I suppose I'll tell Hanabi for now and tell the rest of them at team training._'

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'_Why…why does every single corridor look EXACTLY the same?'_ Naruto yelled mentally. In the branch houses at least people bothered to decorate their doors with their names and sometimes even paint…he supposed the main house were …stricter. 5 more minutes passed before a relieved looking Hyuuga came around the corner in Naruto's direction.

"Naruto-sama, I've been looking for you for awhile. Please follow me, Hiashi-sama thought it be best I show you your temporary quarters for the foreseeable future."

Naruto sighed in relief before gladly following the servant. Oddly enough, he felt someone flare their chakra, but quickly dismissed it as nothing.

"How do you even know which way is what, everything is same!" He exclaimed. This earned a chuckled from his guide.

"Experience, Naruto-sama. This way." He said turning a corner. He followed the man for a good few minutes, though, despite all Naruto's ninja training, he could've sworn the man was just walking him in circles. Finally he came to a stop outside his room, he noticed however, on either side of his bedroom entrance, were two doors of far bigger proportions, and for some reason, they seemed slightly familiar. He turned to the servant and asked.

"Why do those rooms have bigger doors then the other ones we've seen so far?" He asked curiously.

"Ah, those are Hinata-sama and Hanabi-sama's rooms." He said pointing each one out before bowing and leaving.

'_Why the hell would he put me here, this has to be some sort of mistake…No, of course it's not a mistake, Hiashi isn't that stupid._' Naruto stopped questioning himself when he remembered he had to speak to Hanabi. Not bothering to have a look inside of his room first, he went to Hanabi's door and knocked, hoping she'd be in.

"Yes, yes, hurry up and come in already." She called out.

'_Odd, I didn't think she'd be expecting me_.'

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As refreshing as her swim in the stream had been during training, she now found herself cold in her damp clothing. She'd just finished punching her bastard of a sensei in the gut before storming off. She was actually disappointed; she should've stayed there a little longer and watched him writhe in pain more, well at least the thought of it was satisfying. A small smirk graced her lips. As she reached her quarters she threw the door open before throwing it closed again and starting to strip her wet garments. She didn't bother placing them tidily anywhere, she knew a servant would come clean them up later for her. Grabbing a towel from one of her draws she made her way into her personal bathroom before turning the water on in her shower and letting it heat up. Stepping in she sighed in contentment as the warm waves washed over her body. It had been about 10 minutes before she reluctantly turned off the shower and stepped out proceeding to dry herself. Her father always seemed to know if she showered any longer then 10 minutes and it irked her to no end. It's not like they couldn't afford it. She suspected it was just another one of his excuses to annoy her, because lets face it, she knew he didn't have anything much better to do with his time. Once she was thoroughly dried she wrapped the towel just above her bust before scouring her draws for anything to wear. To her annoyance, she noticed that the servants who dealt with the washing of garments seemed to have forgotten to return hers. Scowling, she flared her chakra to let a nearby servant know she was in need of aid. Shortly a knock sounded on her door and a servant came in.

"Go find Saki and tell her to bring fresh garments for me." She ordered. Huffing as the servant left, she sat herself on the side of her bed, waiting for Saki to arrive. She didn't have to wait very long till she heard the knock.

"Yes, yes, hurry up and come in already."

A familiar voice greeted as they stepped inside her room, though it wasn't Saki.

"Hey Hanabi, I just needed to tal…" It seemed Naruto noticed her attire at this point. "Uhh, why are you wearing a towel?"

'_Well this is embarrassing_.' She thought dryly, though her face had turned a shade of pink. Before she could bark at him to leave, he had slid down next to her on the bed and was patting her on the head.

"I see what this is about." He sighed, speaking in a consoling tone. "I should've known, the classic signs of a tsundere. I'm sorry Hanabi, but I don't date 13 year olds."

She was struck speechless…he thought she was trying to seduce him? And to make it worse he was rejecting her on top of it? This damn buffoon and his stupid mock understanding look in his eyes.

"Naruto…" She growled as he rubbed her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"Yes Hanab…" He didn't finish his sentence as a small fist had decked him across the face off of the bed.

"You're an idiot."

This was the scene Saki the garment managing Hyuuga walked in on.

"Ano, am I interrupting something?"

She only received a groan from the blonde and a grunt from the irate blushing Hyuuga.

Yes, Naruto didn't care what people said, punches from 13 year old little girls hurt.

**A/N:**

**Eh, I've got a plotline now, I will have Chunin exams out of the way within the next 3 chapters. They need to happen as a way to show Hanabi and Naruto bonding and getting to know each other more before the rest of the plot can take place and make sense. I've thought of a way so I don't have to make a bajillion different o/cs for the exams. Rest assured they won't be boring, well, I'll do my best at least.**

**Inuyonas: There's no fifth raikage, I lack the imagination to make O/C's. as you may have noticed I don't go into a great level of detail describing pretty much anything in my writing. I love rinnegan fics, but I think it's a bit late to implement it now, though with the plotline I have ready it could be possible, though if it doesn't fit, I won't try to fit it. I was actually considering writing a rinnegan fic sometime in the future anyways. As for free blowjob, that was on the basis that you yourself had the ability to suck your own cock, sorry bro.  
**

**Ashelythetiger:** **I think you may be on to something there with cliffhangers screwing ma 'muse'. By the way, here's the ending to the 'cliffhanger' I left last chapter, if one could call it that lol.**

With a downward glance Naruto noticed that there was one onigiri left on the platter. With a point of his finger and a quick look at both Hyuuga, he asked.

"Anybody gonna eat that?"

With ungodly speed, a hand flashed down and brought the onigiri to the owner's mouths before said mouth descended and took a generous bite.

"Yes." Neji replied smugly.

**Thnx for the reviews everyone else, they always inspire me, even if its just the usual 'Thanks for the update.' That bakapervert leaves. Hopefully the grammar wasn't too bad, I neglected to proofread. **

**R&R. **

**Microtomb**


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